The Great Game
by AreiaCananaid
Summary: It is a basic tactic to divide and conquer; everyone knows it- basic but effective. The strands in a rope are only strong so long as they hold together. The same goes for most everything in life. Just what would it take to break apart a band of brothers?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** this is just a little something I wrote for fun whilst I may or may not have been dodging doing homework and writing essays. It'll be fairly short, about 7 to 8 chapters long. I really enjoyed writing this (though that might just be because my mind was far far away from homework at the time XD) I hope that you all will enjoy it too.

 **Disclaimer:** I own absolutely nothing, not Smash Brothers or it characters. If I did, I would not be writing fan fiction now would I? Technically, it would be considered canon then, wouldn't it? *rubs hands together gleefully* All credits to the original creators.

 **The Great Game**

 **Summary :** It is a basic tactic to divide and conquer; everyone knows it- basic but effective. The strands in a rope are only strong so long as they hold together. The same goes for most everything in life. Just what would it take to break apart a band of brothers?

* * *

 **Prologue**

There were crowds of people watching him; many of whom were people he considered friends and comrades at arms. And yet, there had been few times in his life that he had ever felt this alone, so separated from everyone else. The sentiment as well as the thought filled him with a sense of righteous anger at this farce of justice, this mockery.

He directed burning eyes upon the figure that stood by Master Hand in the observer's box of the stadium. Link tilted his head upwards, proudly, the ridged line of his upright body exuding his defiance. He may have been unarmed, but anyone could see that he was still dangerous, simply by looking at him. It was a fact evidenced by the silence that overtook the stadium. The nervous hum of disconcerted sound that had been a constant background presence ended so suddenly that it created an almost tangible feeling of disquiet. Eyes throughout the stadium crowd followed Link's line of sight to focus on the man swathed in the confidence of his own arrogance, safe in the observation box.

It was because of this that the object of Link's attention finally returned his gaze. Link's lips drew back in a feral smile devoid of any kind of warmth or mirth—the snarl of a cornered wolf. The man standing safe in the observers box, took an unconscious step backwards as he understood the silent message of the blond Hylian warrior: If this was to be some sort of cruel game that the man in safety had cornered him in, then he would play, if only to yell aloud in the quiet of his defiance that this would not end here, this would not end today. It was a challenge uttered so loud in the tension filled stadium that everyone heard it, despite the fact that that it had been spoken without words and in total silence.

The blond warrior turned then, any feelings of dread or sorrow swathed and masked by his show and promise of rebellion. The warp portals opened like the portcullises of an ancient gladiatorial arena, foretelling doom. Link stood ready to meet the monsters that would spring forth from them, silently vowing that he would live to reclaim his sword, his freedom, his friends, and the truth. This board had long ago been set, the pieces already manipulated into this farce. The final plays of this dark game had begun…

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

 **~x~X~x~**

 _Three days previous…._

 **~x~X~x~**

Light shafted through splits in the roof of the cavern to sparkle in the dust in the air. All around him, silence encompassed the shrouded passage. It was a sound that Link knew wouldn't last long; this was Smash Run after all. The silence only heralded the fact that there would be plenty of foes awaiting him and his battle partner. Thinking of his partner, Link stopped near the bend in the passage to look back. He and Ike had been paired together for the team competitions this season and Link was more than pleased with that arrangement. Not only was the mercenary a highly skilled and competent fighter, but he was also one of Link's greatest friends.

The mercenary looked up at him from beneath a mop of indigo blue hair, his lips briefly tilting up at the corners of his mouth.

"I can't help but notice that the quieter things are, the more enemies we seem to face later," he announced wryly, the words spoken so softly that they were barely audible in the gloom.

Link heard him though and nodded his agreement.

"Yeah, I think I noticed that myself when we walked into that corridor filled with darknuts two rounds ago," Link replied just as softly. "Are you ready for this?"

"No point in just skulking in this hallway."

"True enough."

The two swordsmen readied their blades and prepared to round the bend and rise in the road ahead.

It was pretournament season and runs like these did not really hold sway over the final championship, but participating in them granted the competitors much needed practice and winning did grant a higher standing in the eyes of observers. Avid observers waited eagerly for the results of the pre-tourney runs as hints to the outcome of, and sneak peeks into, how the finals would go.

Also, the prize money offered in the in the pretournament was an attractive offer for those whose kingdom and people had just come through a harsh war, as Link's had, or to those who had that as well as their own small army to support, as Ike did. After the fall of Taboo, benefits like these and the international appeal were some of the only things that kept the fighters there for a season annually.

Link and Ike had worked hard to maneuver their team into this final round of the pretournament along with the three other teams who had systematically knocked aside all competition.

Once they made it to the final round, each team would pick one representative to compete in the final contest. The outcome of that contest would ultimately decide the victor, though extra points could be awarded by showing exemplary skill or planning during the run through enemy infested caves. Though those extra points were not enough alone to snatch victory if the final round was lost; it could lessen the sting of defeat by narrowing the margin of loss and increasing the rewards.

Link focused back on the situation at hand and tried hard to get a sense of the room ahead of him. After a moment, he held up three fingers clenched his fist and then held his hand flat. He looked a question at Ike who narrowed his eyes at the dark aperture before them and then nodded once.

They both leaped into action, employing one of their many tactics that had thus far worked well in keeping them successful. In response to Link's silent hand signal, Ike dashed in at full tilt, yelling a battle cry that shattered the silence before the enemies they knew were there had the chance to. His sporadic action created a huge distraction that allowed Link to slip in unnoticed after him and skirt the far wall in order to flank their foes.

It was a good thing that they did for the several green and blue Kritters inhabiting the room turned all their attention on Ike, allowing Link to come at them from behind. Ike and Link converged on the foe as they fought, the maneuver successfully crushing the slashing and biting creatures between them.

The cavern was cleared and silent once more after their furious push. Link, however, did not lower his blade. He had a foreboding feeling that this was not over yet. He could tell by Ike's narrowed eyes and ready stance that the mercenary felt the same.

As if in repose to their suspicion, the earth beneath them began to tremble and an enraged Clubberskull burst forth from the sandy ground, separating the two warriors on opposite sides of the cavern.

"What were you saying about silence being a bad thing?" Link called as the grotesquely misshapen creature, made of rotten bulbous flesh, pulled itself to its full height—which was considerable—and turned its full attention to the blue haired mercenary.

"Now is probably not the best time," Ike called back as he raised his blade.

The creature swung its skull-clubbed fist and Ike leaped to the side in a roll, narrowly avoiding being struck. The massive putrid creature's fist swung wide and slammed into the opening that they had just come through. The impact collapsed the aperture, effectively blocking Ike's only escape route and trapping him in between a hard place, and another gruesome looking, foul smelling, hard place with a personal vendetta.

Link saw Ike roll away from the monster's second strike and ran to come to his friend's aid.

"She really must like you, Ike," he called with a grin as he stabbed at the creature from behind and danced nimbly away from a retaliatory strike. "I mean, she destroyed the only exit just to keep you near her."

"I'm touched," Ike called back with a grunt as he swung his heavy blade hard into the creature's blubbery slimy forearm. It howled and staggered back.

Link poised his weapon to strike it again when he felt his senses suddenly warn of incoming danger. Cursing, he whirled around to see several Peahats and three Zurees. They were headed through the narrow opening of the exit to this cavern gallery.

If the murderous razor leafed plants and turban wearing wizards forced their way into the cavern room, he and Ike would not stand a chance; not against all of them at once with a ragging clubberskull on the loose. He knew instinctively as well as tactically, that he needed to hold the narrow passage of the cave.

By standing there, they could only come at him one or maybe two at a time. It was the only way to stop them. The only problem was that guarding the exit would leave Ike to fight the clubberskull alone. He caught the mercenary's eye and he saw Ike tense as he understood, his eyes flicking away for a brief moment to see the oncoming enemies

"I think she deserves to have a chance with you, you know," Link called over his shoulder glibly in a way that well hid his apprehension. "I think I'm going to leave you two alone," he yelled as he began to hold the exit, and he could not resist one last parting jab, "You know, so you can bond."

"Oh, we're bonding alright!"

Ike dashed under the creature's skull club, his mind racing for a strategy. He saw an opening and raced forward, his sword making contact with soft belly flesh. The creature howled again and charged at its small tormentor, unleashing its full fury. The wildness and forcefulness of its assault forced Ike to take cover behind a pillar and outcropping of rock.

"I don't know why," Ike shouted over the din to Link, "but I'm just not feeling the love. Do you think we might have misinterpreted the signs?"

He faintly heard Link's laugh echo through the pounding yet fruitless blows of the clubberskull. The sound of the furious monster then diminished suddenly as if it finally realized the fruitlessness of its efforts. Finally, it stopped all together.

Ike's ghost smile faded entirely when he saw why. Knowing that it had no chance to get him, it had turned its attention upon Link who was still trying to hold back the last few enemies. The clubberskull made a rush at the green clad Hylain who hardly stood any chance of defending himself, beset by foes as he was. Swearing softly, Ike made a split second decision and committed himself to an utterly reckless course of action just as he heard Link's worried cry of "Ike?"

The mercenary sprinted forward across the sand and onto the grotesquely misshapen body of the monster, only to launch himself higher from its springy rotten flesh. The extra push granted him lift which he converted into extra force as he flipped, charging the flames of his sword as he plunged downward towards the creature's most sensitive spot- knowing all the while that he was leaving himself utterly vulnerable to retaliation.

Two things happened very fast. Ike slammed into the creatures weak spot. The shielding around the beast flung it from the stage, but not before its club fist slammed into the mercenary. Ike went flying in the opposite direction and landed hard in the soft dirt of the cavern. The force of the blow caused him to tumble until he came to a stop near the blocked entrance.

Link had seen it all from the corner of his eye and he threw himself flat as the clubberskull passed overhead, taking out the last of his enemies and widening out the exit in the process.

Link leaped to his feet, worry riding heavy in his chest. He dashed headlong across the now empty cavern to where Ike sat slumped against the rough rocks of the cavern wall.

"Ike?" the mercenary's name echoed for a second time through the cavern gallery.

Ike let out a soft moan and his eyes flickered open.

"Oww," he said simply, rubbing his head.

Link knelt beside him, practiced hands already searching for injuries and then finding one in the shape of an already forming lump upon the mercenary's head. Link winced. His friend pushed his questing fingers away.

"I'm alright. It was mostly a glancing blow." Ike's voice sounded steady and Link's fears began to ease.

In an impulse that was one part concern one part relief and a bit of cheek all mixed up, he held up his hands.

"Are you sure? How many fingers am I holding up?"

Ike glanced at his upraised appendages and answered promptly, "seven."

Link reset his hands and put down three different fingers.

"How many now?"

"Seven."

"And now?"

"Seven again."

"How about now?" Link moved his fingers into another pattern.

"Still seven." Ike's response was short, annoyed.

"And now?"

"Damn it, Link!" Ike began to get to his feet, glaring at his Hylain comrade who was holding up his fingers in yet another pattern of seven.

Link grinned, lending a hand to help his friend up. Once Ike was standing, Link regarded him mostly seriously, his eyes sparkling.

"Thanks for saving me from your girlfriend."

Ike allowed himself a smile. "Yeah, it figures she would be too much for you."

Both were smiling widely with relief at their victory and the knowledge that they only had one last chamber to clear. They were long used to each other.

The next chamber was much easier than the first and they made it through to the place where the last contest was to be held with little difficulty. However, Link could not help but notice Ike's slower motions and he winced again when he thought of the knock on his head.

Once they reached the final cavern and saw what the last contest was going to be, Link saw Ike's shoulders slump. The final competition was 'Climb', an obstacle course that was a mix of a race and bouldering, or free climbing up the tallest cave wall. It was a deadly race where there were a few platforms and ledges on the wall to aid in climbing, but things would be dropped from above.

It was Ike's turn to complete the final challenge for their team but Link could see that this could not be, not with Ike's head wound.

"I'll handle this one," Link said, catching Ike by his arm.

The mercenary nodded gratefully.

Link rushed forwards to where the competitors for this final contest were already lined up. He took his place in between Samus and Mario and caught a glimpse of Captain Falcon heading forward to join them.

He hardly had any time to prepare himself before the horn was blown and the clock started. Whoever was the furthest up the course, by the time that the clock ran out, would be the winner of the Smash Run Pretournament.

Link launched himself towards the rock face and began climbing with a will. He would climb and combine that with leaping upwards when he reached platforms. He would leap, catch a ledge and then pull himself up with practiced agility.

He had the lead and resolved to keep it. The incentive of fear, brought on by the knowledge that this was not a 'no contact' sport, urged him forwards. As if in response to his thoughts, he saw Mario and Captain Falcon engaged in a precarious battle over a ledge below him.

Link dodged a projectile thrown from above by swinging by one arm away from the spot he had previously clung to. The missile narrowly missed him. He swung back and re-exerted his hold on the section of rough wall he was currently traversing, only to see that Samus was gaining on him. The light of competition was shining dangerously forth from her eyes. She was not one to simply let a victory slip through her fingers.

With Mario and Captain Falcon stalled below, it became a desperate race upwards between the two of them. Neither of them for a moment even considered giving quarter to the other. Link felt his breath coming in raged gasps that matched in sound to his competitor's as he pushed his body to the limits.

The horn sounded a short five second warning. Link pulled himself over the final ledge, landing lightly on his feet at the exact same time as Samus. The horn sounded the call to stop. The bounty hunter and the hero eyed each other as they waited for the announcer to call the name of the victor. They did not have long to wait.

"And the winner is…Samus, by two and a half inches!"

Samus beamed and Link could only feel a sense of surprise. He had been sure that they had reached the ledge at exactly the same time. How could she have beaten him by two inches?

Suddenly, puzzlement gave way to shocked and then angry realization. Samus was exactly two and a half inches taller than he was, when she was wearing her flat bottomed shoes for climbing instead of heels.

His mouth dropped open and he found himself too astounded to voice the protest against discrimination that filled his thoughts. He had lost a contest that should have been a tie, simply because he was shorter.

 **~x~X~x~**

About an hour later, Link watched Samus and her partner for these games, Lucina, standing proudly on the winner's podium. It was not a total loss for Link and Ike had gotten themselves higher stats than Samus and Lucina by killing the clubberskull, and Link had only lost by two and a half inches, but the circumstances behind that loss still rankled with him. He knew he was not tall by any of the normal standards but he had never before had cause to find fault in his stature. Being smaller had lent a hand into giving him quite a few advantages in the past, when it came to stealth especially.

By then, the room in which the victory ceremony was being held, was already filled with smashers who had all been informed of, or had seen the means and reason behind, Link and Ike's lot in second place. Although there were a few pitting stares, for the most part, the reaction to the news was the same- amusement. Though nobody was actually brazen enough to laugh at him face to face yet, the mirth of the others was obvious.

With the sting of unfairness still being a little fresh, Link was willing, but not quite ready to fully accept their mirth and add to it his own.

Ike put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Ike." Link said simply. He was, after all, the reason that they had lost.

Ike's face did not show any sign of condemnation. There was disappointment, yes, but also understanding.

"You tried your best," he said, then smiled faintly. "Perhaps I should have raced for us, all things considered," he said in a consoling tone of voice that was obviously intended to have the opposite effect… s _o much for being understanding._

"Yeah, you probably should have; too bad for us that you felt the need to get hit on the head by your ugly girlfriend. If you ask me, that display of yours was in keeping with a total lack of skill; she was just one enemy and while you were struggling with her, I managed to take down about ten others and then run the race for us on top of that." Link smiled back, taking Ike's teasing challenge.

Ike seemed to consider that before he nodded seriously. "Which isn't at all bad for someone of such small stature. When you think about it, it's pretty inspiring how you can work through such difficulties."

Link felt his eyebrows draw downwards, heat rising to his face, and a retort already forming on his lips when he saw Marth, another of his closest friends, enter the room with Princess Zelda not too far behind. The two of them had been paired for the pretournament but had decided to enter in Classic instead of Smash Run. They had actually gotten the highest score, followed shortly by Robin and Pit, then Lady Palutena and Sonic, and finally Ganondorf and Dark Pit.

Marth politely voiced his congratulations to Samus and Lucina, but hurried on when Zelda decided to stay and talk. He headed straight towards where Ike and Link stood. He raised a hand in acknowledgement and then stopped, facing them.

"Link, Ike," he greeted. "I heard about your narrow loss, and I am sorry that the margin was decided like that. I did not think it very fair. You should have tied."

Link felt himself relaxing slightly. Marth was one who generally upheld proper manners before fun. It made sense that he, and probably Zelda, would be the only ones who wouldn't laugh at him, directly or otherwise. After all the attention and laughter aimed at him and his circumstances, it was a break from the embarrassment that plagued him whenever he was faced with being the focal point. Hearing a more polite reaction was a breath of fresh air.

Link smiled at Marth, then grew slightly suspicious when he saw what appeared to be a twinkle of mischief lighting the prince's eyes. Having known the Altean swordsman for the better part of two years, he knew that that look, rare at it was, was the equivalent of his and Ike's cheek; though it was generally more calculated then their typical fooling around.

Having recognized the look, Link waited for an inevitable jibe to follow Marth's words of condolence and support, and was surprised when none came.

Marth merely smiled again. He began to take a brown leather satchel from off of his shoulder.

"I got you a gift Link." Marth's face seemed alight with an expression akin to pride. "I hope that it will help you out a bit."

Curious, Link took the satchel after uttering a soft, "thank you."

He opened the pack, vaguely aware that most the eyes in the room were now directed upon him and his mysterious gift. He reached inside and extracted a study wooden box that was about 12x12x12''. On the front of it, a rendition of the triforce had been neatly painted in gold and black.

Link looked up in puzzlement. The mischievous gleam was back in Marth's eyes. That was the only indication, on a face that was schooled by years of politics into remaining neutral, that he was holding in gleeful laughter.

"It's a box," Marth told him solemnly.

"Yes, I can see that, but wha-"

"Just stick it on the ground, stand on it, and it will make you instantly taller. You can finally look people in the eyes when you speak to them, reach things, and even appear more intimidating in battle. It's the perfect cure for your, ehm, difficulty."

By now Marth could no longer contain his impish grin. Link's mouth dropped open in surprise.

"I even painted a triforce on it for you," Marth went on, "so Little Mac won't be able to steal it."

At Marth's revelation and Link's stunned expression, Ike fell over, howling with laughter. However, aside from Pit, who, in deciding earlier that Link would be his friendly rival this season and therefore found all this hugely amusing, Ike was the only one who laughed. Everyone else gawked in silence at Marth's brashness.

To say that Link had a reputation for being an amazing warrior would have been an understatement. The idea of incurring his wrath was not one that most of the smashers wished to entertain and yet Marth seemed to have forgotten his supposed wisdom and purposely done just that.

Zelda stared on at the unfolding scene in the same shocked silence as everyone else, save Ike, Pit, and the few villains who were eagerly looking forward to a fight. She saw Link shut his mouth slowly, his eyes narrowing under lowered brows. Heat was already rising to his cheeks. He opened his mouth to speak but seemed to be having difficulty forming comprehensive words. Zelda prepared herself to move forwards with the intentions to try and stop any oncoming violence. As she did so, she noticed that everyone else, aside from Ike and Pit, now pounding each other's backs in mirth, had taken a step back.

"Whatever—" Link began in a low voice, "Whatever possessed you to do something so…so…" he lifted his eyes upwards to meet those of the prince and then, to everyone's surprise, his composure broke and his tone lightened, "so considerate?" he finished and then burst into laughter himself. His laughter was so genuine and infectious that most everyone in the room ended up joining them.

As everyone was leaving, Link hung back to walk out with Ike and Marth. Link looked down at the box he still held in his hand and then jabbed Marth in the shoulder.

"You know, you're just as bad as Ike and I."

"True, but you are worse at hiding it, which saves me the strife of having both of your reputations," he grinned and then gestured to the box in Link's hand. "You don't have to keep it you know, I only meant it in jest."

"Are you kidding? I love it! I am going to treasure it always."

"Or at least until he finds the perfect opportunity to throw it at your head," Ike chimed in. "Perhaps you should have rounded off the corners."

Marth laughed. "If he can throw it that high, that is."

"Oh, that just does it!" Link cried indignantly, hefting the box deftly from his right hand to his left and taking a throwing stance.

"Marth you shouldn't test him like that, he just lost the first major race of the season. A person doesn't just recover from that in an instant." Ike said with mock sincerity.

"I may have lost the race that's true," Link returned his false sympathies, "but Ike actually deserves your pity more than I; not only did he lose the race, he also lost his lover."

Ike nodded solemnly.

"Oh, and who was she?" Marth asked.

"A Clubberskull," Ike and Link replied simultaneously.

Marth curled his lip in an involuntary show of revulsion. "If that's the best you can do, Ike, perhaps you should stop trying."

"Don't be so judgmental. She was very powerful, and she was also the first woman to actually be able to see into my heart and recognize my truest potential."

"And as soon as she did, she hit him over the head," Link added.

"Figures." Marth grinned.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thank you for reading! I really appreciate getting feedback and even constructive criticism. I'm an aspiring author who still has a lot to learn so feedback helps a lot!

I would like to thank the DS version of Smash brothers for the inspiration for this chapter. I cannot tell you how sick and tired I am of losing to the taller characters in smash run when the competition is climb. It's totally unfair XD Size prejudice I say! It's unacceptable. I hereby call for a short people revolution! We may be small but our passions and hearts are…. can anyone actually hear me from down here?

 **Question:** is anybody happy to have Roy back? (the swordsman not Bowser's minion, though he's cool too, in his own minion-like way XD )


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Here is chapter two. This is where things really start moving forwards. Thank you to everyone who followed favorited and reviewed, you really provide a lot of the inspiration. I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Thanks for reading!

 **silverheartlugia2000:** Thanks for the review! I don't know if I'll include the shard of twilight yet, but we'll see. Yeah, I agree with you about Roy. Thanks again!

 **BatmanSwiss** : Well I'm all for revolution! I have heard many of the jokes myself XD Thanks for the review and feedback, I'll see if there is anything I might do to make it seem less hollow.

 **InkWoven:** The prologue will make sense later XD I promise. I have always thought that they would be more inclined to be friends than rivals too, I mean just look at their personalities :) Thanks so much for the review!

* * *

 **Chapter 2: 100 Man Smash**

Ike and Marth were sitting in the mess hall together for lunch and Link went to join them. He balanced his tray easily in his left hand as he navigated the room filled with tables and chatting smashers to the far back corner where it was mostly quiet.

It was obvious, by the not so skillfully hidden smiles of the smashers he passed on the way, that the incident of his and Ike's loss earlier in the day had not yet been forgotten. Link smiled to himself as he noticed their grins. In hind sight, the whole episode was, admittedly, pretty funny.

Once he made it to the back table, he set his tray down and sat in front of it as he smiled at his two friends. Taking his bread, he dipped a corner of it into his soup and began eating. Ike reached across and stole his piece of cheese. Link kicked his shin under the table in retaliation.

Ike chuckled and ripped the slice of cheese in half, tossing a piece of the pilfered food back to its original owner and eating the other part. Link glared un-seriously at him.

Marth took a sip of his water and grinned at the pair of them. "Come now Ike, that un-chivalrous behavior was uncalled for. Didn't anyone tell you not to take food from the hungry? I mean just look at him."

Link took the cue and looked up at Ike, taking full advantage of his ability to make terribly successful puppy-eyes.

"Stop that," Ike said, shielding his own eyes. "How am I supposed impose my salvation tax if you look at me like that? I deserve it for saving your life earlier."

"You know, that's actually not a bad idea," Link said suddenly. "We can make it a business and call it, 'Ike's Rescue Services', people can call for his aid, and then repay him in food when he saves them."

"Yes," Marth agreed, "and, as his best friends, we should be able to take a cut of the proceeds."

"I would not mind getting in on that scheme," Zelda said straight faced as she sat down next to Link.

"But if I have to spit my food between the four of us, then it would leave hardly any left for me," Ike said in mock protest.

Zelda glanced at Link's plate and then at Ike. Smiling slightly, she handed her piece of cheese to Link, who beamed at her, then quickly shielded his eyes as Ike tried to use Link's own puppy-eyes technique against him.

"Are any of you going to watch the single competitions today, specifically the Mii Games?" Zelda asked seriously as Link ripped his piece of cheese in half and handed a part of it to Ike.

"It's the last day of the Mii competitions, until the final tournament isn't it?" Ike asked after swallowing a mouthful of food.

"That's right, it is," Link said, his eyes brightening. "So far, no competitor has beaten my record for the One Hundred Man Smash. Since I lost the pre-tourney Smash Run round, the prize money from the Mii games would be very helpful. I was going to split it with Ike." Then Link paused and turned to Marth. "You signed up for One Hundred Man Smash, didn't you?"

Marth nodded, "I'm the last challenger, and the only one competing in that particular game today."

"I was hoping that we could watch it together," Zelda added, "I asked Samus, Robin, Pit, and Lucina already but both of their teams have a match against each other at about the same time, so it would just be us."

"Of course we'd love to watch," Ike said, speaking for himself and Link, who nodded in agreement. "We'll cheer you onwards."

It had become almost like a custom for them to watch each other's matches whenever possible.

Marth chuckled and then his face grew serious.

"I was planning to split the prize money with Zelda if I won… I have a proposition: What if we all split the money of the victor. That way, if I win, you and Ike won't end up empty handed and, if you win, you act in kind to Zelda and I. Then it does not matter which of us is the victor because we will all get a share. I know it would not be as much as you would get if you won and did not have to spit it, but it would be better than coming in empty handed if you lose."

Link considered for a moment and then nodded, reaching his hand across the table to clasp the prince's.

"You've got a deal."

"Attention Smashers!" a voice at the head of the room shouted over the din.

The dining hall grew suddenly quiet. Link turned around to see Master Hand's friend, Eroc Retsam, standing on the raised dais at the end of the room. He was a tall man with a more pale complexion, dark hair and deep brown eyes.

Link did not know much about Eroc, only that he had come to help out Master Hand for this Smash season. He and Master Hand were obviously pretty close. Apparently, he had saved Master Hand's life once. Link had not ever spent much time near the man so he really had no opinion on the man's character except for the fact that he knew that Master Hand trusted him.

"Attention Smashers!" Master Hand's friend repeated. "I am here to announce the afternoon competitions today. As you know, there are a few Smashing Matches, as well as the close to the Mii games. All the final victors will be chosen today."

Link continued to listen as Eroc listed the particulars of the schedule but was slightly distracted by Zelda who was sitting slightly slumped in her chair. They had been through much together both back in their own kingdom and when facing Taboo. He knew her well enough to know when something was upsetting her.

"Are you alright?" Link whispered to her.

She nodded, "It's nothing really. I've just been a little tired lately."

"Understandable, since you are being an overachiever and entering twice the amount of competitions as everyone else, _Sheik_ ," he grinned at her.

When she did not smile back, his concern grew.

"But this is something more than that?" he ventured.

"It's not anything serous; I just couldn't sleep last night."

"Nightmares?"

She nodded and then shrugged her shoulders, "It's probably nothing."

Link slipped his hand into hers, "If you ever need to say anything, know that you can say it to me."

She nodded gratefully at him, then turned her attention back on the speaker announcing the matches.

Link knew she wished to drop the subject so he did, though he decided to keep an extra sharp eye out. It was never a good sign when Zelda had nightmares.

~x~X~x~

It was late in the afternoon, just before the start to the final competition in the Mii Games. Ike and Zelda were already in the stands waiting for Marth's performance to begin, saving a seat for Link. Link had decided to accompany Marth to the control room, something that the four friends often did for each other.

The control room operated every aspect of the games, the magic and technology that mingled together to make the smash games what they were, from duration time to shielding and conditions. It was also the point where characters were warped to the stage. Link straightened from where he had been working to help Marth second check his armor. He wished Marth good luck as he headed towards the warp gate. The timer above it read that he only had about two minutes to spare.

"Make sure you go easy on the Miis, you don't want to crush their hopes too badly," Link called.

Marth grinned at him, "They knew what they were getting themselves into when they came here; the least I can do is to treat them with the same courtesy that I would show any smasher."

"Marth, I can't believe you; using the excuse of proper manners to act without proper manners, shame on you!" Link teased.

The Mii fighters in all the Mii Games, aside from, Cruel Smash, were young fighters hoping to earn themselves a place competing in the Smash Games. If they proved their skill they would be sent to be the opponents in Cruel Smash. From there, if they proved their valor, they would be accepted into the official smash roster. It was an opportunity for unknown fighters to get a chance to compete and rise in the ranks.

Marth laughed and said something in reply, but Link did not catch what it was. His mind was suddenly assailed with a sudden sense of dread that twisted its way into his chest. It was a feeling almost as strong as his senses filled him with when in wolf form during the War of Twilight when there was danger ahead. Something was horribly wrong. It was not just a feeling of danger; this was something rooted, something planned.

He tuned everything else out so that he might better focus of the cause of this sudden feeling of ill intent. Senses in him that had been left over from his time spent in wolf form were never explicit or specific. It could warn him of danger and its direction and sometimes even give a hint to its magnitude, but it would never give him insights into exact plans, numbers, or events. He could not sense auras like Lucario, and he definitely did not get detailed premonitions like Shulk.

As it was now, he was able to pinpoint the relative location of the disturbance. He swung his gaze towards the door that led out into the hallway. Though the sense came from that direction it was not close by so he cautiously edged towards the door and opened it. Hand on sword hilt; he stood in the doorway, his mind filled with his own sense of misgivings and the remembered thoughts of Zelda's recent nightmares.

Then, he saw it. It was a shuddering black shadow flitting with all speed around the bend in the hallway traveling away from him. Though he glimpsed it only for the briefest of moments, it looked almost to be a manifestation of shredded darkness.

As soon as he saw it, he knew that that shadowy figure was the source of his sudden sense of malevolence and feelings of misgivings. Fearing to let such a creature roam the mansion freely, so it could enact whatever warped plan was causing it to send such strong signals of ill intent, he made a split second choice and chased after it.

~x~X~x~

Marth had asked Link a question and, when he did not answer, he turned his head and caught sight of the green of Link's tunic as the door to the hallway closed behind him. Slightly puzzled, but knowing that he did not have the time to find out what Link was about, he shrugged inwardly and turned back around. The clock signaled that he had only five seconds left until the warp portal he was standing on would be completely activated and he would be warped to the Mii games stage.

For a moment, he thought he heard the sound of the door closing again. He felt the familiar weird sensation overtake him as the warp gate began to activate and he was rendered completely immobile by the beams of light.

Suddenly, he felt a presence beside him and felt his warrior's instincts kick in as he got a gut feeling of danger. However, he could move nothing but his eyes as the gate began to take full effect. From the corner of his eye he saw a brown-gloved hand reach towards his side, somehow able to move in the beam. The shape of a triangle glowed gold on the back of the gloved hand and Marth caught a flash of green as the hand pulled away, taking his sword with it. It all happened in the final second it took for Marth to warp from the control room to the Mii stage, so fast that he might have missed the whole thing had he blinked.

~x~X~x~

Zelda watched as Marth was warped onto the stage, expecting to see his usual starting form, an elegant sword salute before stepping into a fighter's stance. But instead, he practically stumbled, which in itself was odd. He stumbled from the warp door, a look of confusion on his pale face, his hand devoid of its weapon. He took a step back, clenching his empty hands, his eyes wide with an unreadable emotion that seemed halfway between puzzlement and shock. When he stepped back, she saw that, not only was his weapon not in his hand, it was nowhere on his person. The sheathe that hung at his side was empty.

From behind her, where many other smashers were sitting in order to see the final event in the Mii games, she heard Mario's puzzled, "he has-a no sword."

"I always knew that he was arrogant, but this just beats all," Wario who was sitting behind and to the side of her sneered in a tone of annoyance. "Does he think that by fighting without his sword that he will get more points, to beat out Link?"

A few of his friends, sitting around him, began to mutter in agreement commenting snidely about Marth and his conceited mannerisms, openly condemning him for his arrogance.

Even as Zelda heard their idea, she knew that it was wrong. If Marth had decided to show off in his arrogance and not use a sword then, logically, he would have left his weapon in its sheathe. If haughty pride were his aim, it would have shown far more arrogance and condescension to have a weapon and not use it than to leave it behind.

Another thing she noted was that Marth didn't look arrogant; he looked upset, almost fearful. Also, Marth was intelligent. He would never let pride get in the way of logic. Who in their right mind would disadvantage themselves for pride in a one hundred man smash?

She looked to her left to see that that Ike must have come to the same conclusion. His brows were furrowed and he had a look of concern on his face.

"What's he doing?" Ike asked softly, "Something seems off."

Before she could reply Marth's challengers appeared on the stage: four Miis. She saw Marth shift from his moment of startled confusion into a fighter's crouch. For some reason, the match was obviously not being called off. Consequently, he had no other option than to prepare to defend himself. It was not a moment too soon for the four Miis made a sudden rush at him, signifying the start of the battle as well as the start of the clock.

Marth had never been a fist fighter. His battling talents lay with the lightning fast strikes of his sword, but he was still more than agile. His movements still held that sense of controlled grace that made him fascinating to watch. He dodged the Miis' initial attacks and got behind them. A heavy kick sent one flying and he sent the second one toppling into the third. He danced past the fourth's attack, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, kicked his gun from his hand and then kicked him off the edge of the stage to join the other four.

It all happened so fast that the stage was momentarily empty before the next four dropped in. His speed and agility took care of the first two but left him open to a gunner's strike. Quick as ever, he grabbed the remaining boxer in a chokehold and used him as a shield. The Mii's personal shielding flung him from the stage and Marth threw himself at the gunner before he had the chance to aim again. That move was one that Marth normally would not have pulled, but, without his sword to assist him in blocking and countering attacks, he was severely disadvantaged and so did what he had to. Miis were already replacing the ones who had been sent off the stage. In almost no time at all there were once again four.

Though Marth's movements were as fluid as usual, Zelda could see a tightness to his stance that bordered on the appearance of frenzy. This was not a fighting style that the Altean prince was particularly skilled in. If something did not change soon, he was going to be in trouble. Through and amazing display of acrobatics, Marth managed to steal a sword from one of the fighters before knocking him off the stage.

Zelda felt relief at the sight, surly now he…. The sword broke in his grasp the moment he wielded it against and enemy, leaving him once again weaponless. He tried again with the next set of four and the same thing happened. The uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach began to grow slightly. There was now little doubt in her mind that something was beyond wrong here. Marth managed to get his hands on a gun. He aimed and fired, but nothing happened.

"Ike, go get Master Hand," Zelda found herself saying, "There is definitely something wrong with this."

The mercenary nodded and rose to his feet; it seemed that the idea had been brushing his own mind as well. Tuning, Ike wove his way through the stands as fast as he could and then raced down the open walkway.

Marth had managed to make his way though twelve rounds of fighters, which meant that he had defeated forty eight, only about halfway through. It was about as soon as Ike left that things started getting worse.

When Marth had once again cleared the stage, he stood panting with exertion as he waited for the next four fighters to appear. Zelda saw his eyes widen and then look desperately at the crowd as if asking for help when the warp portals opened again and, instead of four Miis, he was faced with ten all at once. By this time, not even Wario felt sure that Marth had done this to himself deliberately any longer.

~x~X~x~

Link had chased the weird shadow down two sets of hallways but was nowhere nearer to catching it than he had been when he first saw it. Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself further, trying to coax more speed from his muscles. His extra effort seemed to pay off for he actually began to gain on his quarry. He rounded the next bend in the hallway and, for the first time, the shadowy creature came into full view.

He began to draw his sword form his sheathe, fixing his eyes on the fast moving blight, only to skid to a stop as he saw the shadow break into pieces like shattering dark glass and dissipate, vanishing before his eyes.

He stood still for a few moments longer waiting to see if the creature would return whist trying to get a sense of its location. But the feeling of malice that it embodied had dissipated along with its shadow. He cursed softly to himself as he realized that he had totally lost the creature.

Coming to a decision, Link decided to head to the stadium and tell Zelda and Ike of what he had seen. After the match, since Master Hand allowed for no interruptions until he was free, he would tell him as well. He was positive that Master Hand would want to know of this being, especially if was uninvited as well as having possible intentions to do harm. Turning, he headed back the way he had come.

~x~X~x~

Ike ran as fast as he could to the control room of the Mii Games and was mildly startled to see the room in utter chaos, as if a war had taken place there. Master Hand was already in there.

"If you have come about the situation with Marth, I already know and am trying my best to stop it." Master Hand said while he desperately tried to rewire a panel then perform magic when that failed.

"Can't you just tell the Miis to stop?"

"I could if the intercom system weren't damaged."

"What about opening a warp door to get him out of there?"

Master Hand seemed to deflate, "I would if that system weren't damaged as well. As it is now, it is only working like a door that only opens one way. I won't be able to get him out until the game ends and the shielding around the inner stadium falls, or his personal shielding sends him off the stage."

Suddenly, Master Hand formed into a fist and pounded the ground in frustration.

"What is it?" Ike demanded.

"It appears that the Mii portals are damaged too, they are releasing all the remaining fighters onto the stage all at once!"

"What?" Ike demanded, horrified for his friend now, "Do something!"

"I can't!" Master Hand began furiously trying to fix a panel and then cried out again, "Now Marth's personal shields are failing!"

Ike felt his heart sink. Personal shields were like force fields that surrounded each brawler like armor. It protected them from the cut of blades and the penetration of bullets. It was also the mechanism that aided in flinging a fighter from the stage when they had taken too much damage.

"What can you do?" Ike asked, horror and rising panic making his voice harsh.

"All my systems are damaged, I can't do anything!"

"You have to do something!"

Ike had hardly ever seen Master Hand lose control of himself before, but he did just then. His frustration and fear began to make him volatile.

"Shut up, and let me think! If you don't have any suggestions or way to help me fix this, then get out of here!"

Ike looked towards the flickering warp door then felt his sense of frustration and panic, at not being able to help, begin to fade as he settled on a course of action.

"The outer shield won't lower until all the Miis are off the stage right?" he asked suddenly.

"Yes!" Master Hand yelled his voice wrought with rage, "I already told you that!"

"Just making sure I have my facts straight," Ike said calmly as he held his sword ready and crouched slightly.

Master hand noticed his sudden change of demeanor and turned from his frantic work, his tone changing from sheer desperation to desperate hope.

"You have some idea?"

Ike's face was set in grim determined lines.

"You said it was like a one way door," he said simply before running full tilt at the portal, ignoring Master Hand's cry for him to stop, that he wouldn't have shielding either and that he could not endanger another of his fighters.

~x~X~x~

Zelda had leaped up from her seat and was gripping the railing of the stand seats, whishing for Ike and Master Hand to hurry up and stop this. The fight had gone from controlled and beautiful to watch to brutally ugly within a matter of moments. Marth was fighting and unarmed duel against nearly thirty warriors and things had gotten nasty. He had managed to take out several of the aggressors and doge many attacks but soon he was beset on all sides with little chance for escape.

It seemed that every one of the Miis wanted nothing more than to defeat Altea's strongest warrior prince and, in so doing, prove themselves strong enough to become actual smashers. They were showing Marth absolutely no quarter. He had been forced into a defensive battle that he had finally lost the moment he had been surrounded. The stage had become too small with all the fighters to allow him the space he needed to escape their ring or fight back properly.

He had taken so many hits that the safety mechanism on his person should have long since flung him from the stage, but that aspect of the games seemed not to be working. The crowd's happy cheers of encouragement had turned into unhappy cries for this one-sided contest to be stopped. Though Marth was still fighting furiously, it was grossly unfair.

Marth fended off a sword with his forearm and downed a warrior but was not fast enough to avoid getting grabbed by four Miis who seemed vastly more skilled and angry than the rest. These four seemed also to poses twice as much purpose as the others.

One of these head-butted the ensnared prince in the face, hard. Blood flowed freely from the Altean's nose as he staggered backwards into the open arms of another hostile who sent a flurry of closefisted blows crashing into the right side of his face. The fighter let go of him only to kick him backwards. All this together caused him to fully lose his balance and he began to fall. However, before he even hit the ground of the stage, the fourth man, a swordsman, stabbed forwards at him, whilst yelling something.

Zelda could not hear it clearly but it sounded as if the swordsman had yelled something along the lines of: "Do you think us worthless now, prince?"

Marth tried to twist out of the way, but there was only so much that he could do whist falling. The sword connected. Zelda's heart froze momentarily at the sound of a screamed cry of agony. She soon saw why. It appeared that any personal shielding around Marth had utterly failed for the sword had penetrated flesh.

There came a collective gasp of horror from the audience. Even the Mii who had wielded the sword seemed horrified as he withdrew his weapon from Marth's torso and stepped back only to have it clatter to the ground as it fell from shock numbed fingers. Marth knelt before the Mii, his hands clasping the wound in his side, glazed widened eyes staring almost uncomprehending at the figure before him.

There was by now, not a single person in the whole stadium that was not crying for this fight to be stopped. The four Miis who had wrought this result suddenly changed stance and tried to stop the other Miis from attacking once they realized that there was something wrong. Unfortunately, the Miis in the back had not seen the fact that Marth's shields had failed and continued forward, swarming the four who stood in their way and sending them from the stage and then causing the downed prince to disappear under the press of their attack.

There was nothing Zelda could do but watch. The shielding around the arena kept anyone on the outside out, as well as anyone on the inside in. Suddenly, a warp portal shimmered and Ike burst through into the arena, his sword already in his hand, his body already charging forwards. The blade of his golden sword became sheathed in flames as he struck forward at the Mii's. Their shielding flung them from the stage and cleared Ike's path. He swung his blade about himself with the powerful, rough, yet utterly controlled style that was his alone. He did not stop or falter until he stood over Marth's prone form.

From there, he stood rooted to the spot, fighting so furiously that he could not be budged from where he stood. He lashed out at anyone who came within the reach of his blade and did his best to shield both of them when he could, and the very few times when he could not, he made sure that any hits were taken by him and not his self appointed charge.

When there were only three Miis left, he finally stepped away from Marth and sent each one of them off the stage in turn. Zelda saw the shields beginning to lower along with the stage and ran towards it, already trying to channel some of her healing magic. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Doctor Mario, and the emergency team heading for the stage as well.

Ike lowered his sword after he knocked the final Mii from the stage and ran quickly back to where Marth lay unmoving. He planted the point of his sword into the ground then knelt by his fallen companion.

The Mii's sword had left an ugly deep gash in Marth's side, and blood flowed freely from there, staining his clothes and the ground. Ike swore to himself as he removed his cloak, bundled it up and used it to apply pressure to the wound and cut off the dangerous flow. The downed prince made a small noise of protest at the motion.

Ike glanced at his face, murmuring for him to stay still. His nose mouth and chin were bloody and the right half of his face was already beginning to bruise. His hair was disheveled and the half circlet of gold he wore as his crown was nowhere to be seen. A crimson gash on his forehead was making the blue of his hair stand out in startling contrast.

As Ike held his cape down on the wound, his friend curled in on himself and turned onto his uninjured side. He coughed painfully and spattered blood on the stage close to his face. His eyes opened then and stared up at Ike in a partial daze. He whispered something in his native tongue and reached a hand out to grab Ike's as if seeking support or comfort there. Ike did not understand much of Marth's native language, but he knew enough to recognize the words 'thank you,' when he heard them.

"Just hang on," Ike said softly, relived to see Zelda, Dr. Mario, along with the hardly used medical team on the way. Normally, Master Hand's safety precautions and failsafes kept the smashers from any serious harm. However, just the sight of the young swordsman shivering with pain and trying to breathe properly thorough the hurt of it all was enough to prove that the safety precautions had definitely failed this time.

Ike stayed by his side until Zelda and the rest got to the stage. He took and almost reluctant step backwards when they approached in order to let them take over. Once he saw that he could be of no further help to them, and that they had the matter well in hand, he retrieved his sword and backed off the stage to stand among the ranks of the crowd of smashers that had gathered there to watch, picking up a misshapen twisted piece of gold metal from the ground as he went.

A familiar figure dressed in green pushed their way through the crowds of shocked smashers to stand near Ike.

"Ike, what's going on? What happened? Is Marth alri-" Link cut himself short when he finally was able to get a good look at the stage. His face paled even as his eyes widened in surprise.

"There was some sort of stage malfunction," Ike said then added in a soft whisper, "or sabotage." He shut his mouth suddenly, his eyes directed towards where Zelda Dr. Mario and the medical team were trying to get Marth to the infirmary.

"Will he be alright?" Link breathed in question, his voice deathly quiet.

"I hope so."

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks again for reading! As usual I do love feedback. I would also like to thank my family for the innumerable times you guys have locked your car keys in the car, or broken them in the lock when you're out and about, ran out of gas or got stuck on the mesa off-roading, for you have given me the inspiration for "Ike's Rescue Services" seriously if you guys keep it up, I am going to start changing three pastries per rescue!

 **Question:** What do you suppose happened to poor Lucas's eyebrows?


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** And chapter three is up! Thank you, to all my readers, your support is very very appreciated.

 **silverheartlugia2000:** Well, that I can definitely do XD Poor Link, he is rather a magnet isn't he? Thanks for the review, I really appreciate it!

 **BatmanSwiss:** One can hope XD Thanks so much for the review!

 **tezzie:** I never much cared for that sort of characterization for him either XD I have been trying pretty hard to keep them all as in character as possible, I mean it was their characters that made me like them in the first place, so It would be a pity to ruin it XD I think they'd be friendly with each other if they met. Thank you for the review, it was very encouraging to read.

 **telesoap:** You'll find out in this chapter, I promise :) Thanks for the review!

* * *

 **Chapter 3: Repercussions**

It was only about fifteen minutes later that all the smashers were called to a meeting in the mess hall. By this time, most everybody had an idea what it was going to be about. Link noticed that most the people seemed to be at least slightly concerned, while a few others merely looked annoyed that their entire day was interrupted for a mere accident.

Link did not exactly know how to feel. His mind seemed to still be in a state of shock and worry for his friend. He was anxious for any type of news. He stood side by side with Ike near the front of the raised dais as he waited for Master Hand to Speak.

"As you all are probably aware," Master Hand began, "There seems to have been a severe malfunction in the Mii Games and one of our smashers, Marth, has been seriously injured because of it."

A hush grew over the assembled smashers and Master Hand continued onwards.

"Because of this, any other matches scheduled for today have been called off while the safety of the system is assessed." There was another pause before he continued. "Though I do not have sufficient evidence to support this, I believe that this was no accident. Preliminary evidence supports the theory that the game was sabotaged and that Marth was specifically targeted. Therefore, I will be allowing no visitors to see Marth or allow any of you to leave the mansion until I am sure."

There was some soft muttering and a few gasps at this news. Link felt his heart sink in a mixture of guilt, anger, and grief.

"Rest assured I will be conducting a full investigation into this matter and shall know for sure tomorrow morning. At which time, if it is discovered just to be an accident, things will go on a usual. If not, the perpetrator of this deed will be found and expelled from the mansion."

On those somber notes, Master Hand moved from the stage. The smashers regarded each other quietly for a moment before the room burst into a cacophony of muted voices.

Link turned unsure eyes upon Ike who stood rigidly with a frown darkening his features still holding a badly bent piece of metal in his left hand.

"I need to tell Master Hand what I saw in the hallway," he said finally and Ike nodded silently.

~x~X~x~

Zelda left Marth's room early the next morning, before the sun had fully risen. Master Hand had initiated an emergency response team that could respond to the medical needs of the smashers in a way that was most familiar to them, or in a way that would be the most effective in emergency situations. Zelda had signed up earlier in the year to be one of the three healers who preferred to use magic as their method of healing. They were on rotations, and this month just so happened to be hers. Needless to say, she had spent another sleepless night. The medical team had moved Marth to his own room once it was officially determined that he was out of danger, late the night before, and she had accepted the task of watching over him.

As it was now, she needed to get up and move around lest she fall asleep. She needed a change of scenery and a breath of air. As she stepped into the hallway, she was unsurprised to see two R. guarding the door. She had been informed of Master Hand's suspicion of sabotage. It was a thought that sickened her. It was not pleasant to think that someone would intentionally injure someone else to such an extent.

However, she was mildly surprised to see, Lucina, Robin, and Pit sitting against the opposing wall ahead of her, fast asleep. Obviously, they had been waiting there for some news on their friend. Link also was there and was sitting just outside the door, his back to the near wall, staring dully ahead. His eyes were shadowed as if he had stayed awake all night as she had done.

"Link?" she asked in question, "How long have you been sitting there?"

Instead of answering her question, he directed concerned blue eyes upon her, "How is he?"

"Marth?"

"No, Dr. Mario," there was a biting edge to his voice.

Zelda took no notice of either the tone or the sarcasm. He had obviously stayed awake all night, was worried for his friend, and for some reason she could tell that he was angry. Also, as sweet as he could be, he could be more than a little sarcastically snippy when he felt backed into a corner or helpless.

She lay a hand on his shoulder and felt it slump slightly as the rigidity of his body failed and he hung his head.

"I'm sorry, Zelda," he whispered.

"I understand," she told him softly. She then sighed as she decided to tell him the truth, "To answer your question, he is going to be alright. He is in a lot of pain still, lost quite a bit of blood, he took quite a lot of hits and so is pretty battered and not quite lucid yet, but he will be alright. It will be a while before he will be able to be up and about, even with Master Hand's healing items- they weren't really built for this kind of damage."

Link nodded and then seemed to sink further in on himself with both relief and upset at the news. He reached suddenly into the pouch at his side and pulled out a small glass bottle and leather wallet.

"Please, give him these," he requested quietly. "They'll help with the pain and the healing."

Zelda took the items from him and raised her brows in surprise as she recognized the liquid in the bottle and contents of the wallet.

"Link, this is a potion made from the blue chew jelly. They are rare; it must have taken you ages to hunt it. And these are herbs from you home province."

"Exactly, they are meant to heal and Marth needs them, what cause have I to hoard them when they could help someone?"

"It is a precious gift, Link."

"I would have given them sooner, if the R.O.B.s would have let me in."

Zelda smiled at him, but the expression faded when she caught sight of the look of bitter disappointment and anger on his face.

"I'm sure Marth would thank you, and probably will later. You should sit with him once you are able to, I'm sure he'd be glad…" she trialed when she saw him shake his head. "Link, what's wrong?"

His eyes seemed to cloud over.

"This is my fault. I sensed something wrong but was unable to do anything to prevent this. I keep revisiting in my mind; if I had just pinpointed the feeling faster, or stayed there with him, this might not have happened. I know that the blame truly lies with faulty equipment or sabotage, but I can't help but feel that I let him down, that I failed him. I don't know how I could ever tell him. What would I say: 'hey, I had a feeling that might have saved you all of this if I had been faster or more in tune with my surroundings, but I wasn't, so… sorry about that?' How could I tell him that?"

For a moment his eyes looked depthless and hollow, far too sad for her liking. Zelda knelt down beside him and looked him straight in the eyes.

"This wasn't your fault Link and Marth knows it. I know Marth, if you tell him what you told me, the only emotion he would feel would be gratitude that you tried to save him, even if you could not. You can't save everyone, that is true, but you can always try. And it is the act of attempting to do something right that is truly honorable. In fact that is the one thing I admire about you the most- that you always try," she took a breath to see if her words had sunk in then she smiled softly at him. "I'm actually a bit ashamed of you for not seeing it, you can be dense sometimes you know," she finished.

He stared at her, his face a picture of surprise, both eyebrows raised and his mouth slightly agape, stunned speechless. Zelda stood quickly, and headed back towards Marth's room. "I'll tell you if there is any more news," she called over her shoulder.

As she glanced back, she was rewarded with a faint smile from Link. Smiling to herself, she went into the room. Once inside, she quickly set about the task of changing Marth's bandages, using Link's herbs as a salve for his bruises the gashes and the burn from the laser of a Mii's gun on his upper arm. She took extra care around the painstakingly closed stab wound in his far left side.

As she had thought the night before, Marth had been very lucky that the Mii's sword had nearly glanced off of him before it connected. It had missed hitting anything really vital and had not made in as deep as it could have.

Though, thinking harder, she supposed luck really had nothing to do with it. It was Marth's prescience of mind and quick reaction when he saw the strike coming at him that had lessened the damage. His turn to the side was what really had saved him, making the blade enter with less force and at an angle. It was that which resulted in the penetration being shallower and directed away from his internal organs.

It had taken quite a while the night before to use her healing magic to kick start the mending of the torn and severed muscles before Dr. Mario expertly stitched the skin. The area was healing fast but it was still agitated and weeping slightly.

She lifted the listless prince forwards to redo the bandage around his middle. He was quite a bit heaver than she had expected. Though he was very slight of figure, he had quite a bit of muscle mass. His breathing became slightly raged as she held him up and he groaned softly in discomfort. She gently eased him back down and ran a hand through his silky well kempt hair.

Even after seeing him like this all night, it still hadn't gotten easier. He had ended up becoming one of her greatest friends here, especially this season, since they had been paired together for this entirety of the pretournament team games. Seeing him so still was disturbing. He was one of the only ones here who understood the burden she bore as a ruler of a kingdom. He knew what it felt like to have ones kingdom taken from ones grasp and then having to fight to get it back and save the people.

Sighing softly, she took the blue potion that Link had given her and somehow managed to get him to take it. She then sat down to watch, knowing that things like these generally took effect quickly. Usually the healing properties were so great that they could completely heal a single damaged area. But when the wounds were so many and so spread apart as his were, it would probably end up being a partial healing of everything instead.

As she watched, the bruising on his face seemed to diminish slightly and the swelling vanished completely. A cold sweat began to bead his brow and he twisted uncomfortably. It was then that she knew it was really taking effect. The quick healing made one feel momentarily feverish in return for feeling much better afterwards.

She ran a hand through his hair again and began talking to him as she had done during the night when he had been delirious, half conscious, and hurting. It had seemed to help him before so she kept it up.

"Do you remember when we were talking about the philosophers of our countries?" she pulled her hand from his hair and set it in her lap. "You were telling me of Scaroae, the manakete and his ideals, how he would simply ask questions in order to find the flaws in an argument without lecturing or teaching. You had said the reason he did this was not to find ultimate truth in all things like his predecessors and contemporaries, but only to clear away misconceptions.

"We then got onto the subject of truth and morals and I told you of Arystola, Hyrule's philosopher queen who said that every virtue and vice was balanced in between two others, and there were no such things as solid opposites. For instance, fear is found somewhere in between courage and love. She got the inspiration by thinking on the triforce and the idea that everything must balance. You seemed interested and so I promised to bring you a historical manuscript on her works in exchange for the one about Scaroae."

She knew she was rambling, but she was merely trying to pass the time whilst hoping that just hearing the sound of her voice might help him in some way. All things considered, she was surprised when he nodded his head slightly.

"I remember," he said, his voice soft and careful, "but I have not gotten the book I promised you yet, I'm sorry…"

Blue eyes met hers and she smiled.

"Welcome back."

He winced, "The dark dragon Medius almost gives kinder welcomes," he smiled crookedly at her, "Though, seeing your face does help quite a bit."

She raised one elegant eyebrow at him. Shaking her head, she laughed at him softly.

"It's a relief to find that you are well enough to tease again."

"I wasn't teasing," he protested with a pout.

Zelda could not resist the urge to ruffle his hair gently. She was pleased to see him respond in his typical fashion by bringing up his arms to immediately run the flat of his hands over his hair in an almost unconscious gesture in order to straighten it. He hated having messy hair. Though the gesture was much slower and more careful than usual, it was a relief to see him moving in a manner she associated with him.

Zelda cleared her throat, "I should go and get Master Hand; he will probably have some questions about what happened."

Marth's expression turned suddenly somber and almost evasive. He began to rub his bandaged wrist lightly with his other hand and winced before he finally spoke.

"Of course."

"It wasn't an accident was it?" Zelda asked quietly, noting his unease.

Marth shook his head.

"No, it wasn't," he admitted softly.

"Do you know who-" she stopped when he once again carefully shook his head. "But you saw something?" she added instead.

"Yes," he admitted, his face and odd mix of conflicted emotions and confusion.

"But you are not exactly sure what it was," she finished for him and he nodded.

He tried to shift positions and his face paled as the action hurt him. Zelda put her hand gently on his shoulder.

"You should probably lie still for the next few days, until you side mends completely. And after that, you should take it easy for a while," She told him.

He nodded in understanding.

"Thank you, Zelda," he whispered quietly.

She smiled softly and inclined her head towards him in response.

"I'll go get Master Hand," said finally

It only took a few moments for Master Hand and his friend to arrive.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Master Hand asked after the typical formalities.

"Certainly," Marth replied. His voice sounded a little clipped though it still was hushed and careful. He began outlining all the events that had led up to what had happened. When he got to the part about his sword being taken when he could not move, he did not so much as pause in his narrative but Zelda saw his eyes change slightly, mirroring the expression she had seen in him the day before when he had found himself weaponless on the stage.

"Whoever it was, they were wearing brown fingerless gloves, and the back of their hand glowed beneath the fabric, in the shape of a triangle. The only other thing I saw was a flash of green…" his face had grown taught and he closed his mouth for an moment as well as his eyes, "That's all I can remember, and all I saw, I'm sorry."

"No, I am sorry," Master Hand apologized. "This should not have happened. I can't take back what was done, but I can promise to find whoever is responsible."

Marth nodded again, his expression still tight. Master Hand, Eroc, and Zelda left shortly after so that he could rest.

Zelda rubbed her eyes as she headed for her room, intending to get some much needed sleep. Though her mind was a little foggy with fatigue, something about Marth's story was not sitting well with her. From what he described, it sounded much like a person with a mark of the triforce on their hand had been that one to steal his sword and then sabotage that game. She could only think of one such person, and that was Ganondorf.

Unfortunately, for the life of her, she could not think of a motive. Ganon and Marth hardly ever socialized with each other. The only times she could think of was the few times they sparred or competed in a brawl against each other and the one time when Marth had asked him in passing about Gerudo politics and the obscure Gerudo philosopher Nietzshiea, and Ganondorf had asked about Altea's governing system in return.

The power hungry Gerudo king's brief interactions with the prince of Altea had always been fairly respectful and brief. It gave Ganon no motive to attack him, especially since a move like that would not give him any political power. The only reason she could think of was that Marth was friends with both her and Link. If that was the case though, why not go after Ike, Lucina, Samus, Robin, or even Pit? Still puzzling over these thoughts, she was startled when Master Hand's friend suddenly approached her at a rapid pace.

"Princess Zelda!" he called, "There is urgent news for you from your country!"

Zelda took a folded piece of parchment from his hand and read. The note had come from her council. Her face paled, there was grievous problems arising in Hyrule and she needed to return there immediately. All thoughts of sleep driven from her mind, she told Master Hand's friend of the contents of her letter and went to pack her things. She had no time to waste.

~x~X~x~

Link was on his way to the mess hall, having been summoned along with all the other smashers for another meeting. All the smashers were there except for Zelda, who, Link had learned, had been called away back to Hyrule for an emergency. Obviously it was something that he could not help her with, otherwise she would have asked him to come with her. He hoped that she would not face any extreme hardships or danger. The last thing he wanted was for another of his closest friends to find trouble. It was a bit strange that it should happen so close after yesterday's incident and only a week after both Lucario, Mewtwo and Shulk had had to return to their land for similar reasons.

Link heard hurried steps behind him and turned to see Ike trying to catch up to him. Link waited for him. Ike's eyes were shadowed, and Link guessed it was because the mercenary had also stayed up almost all night, trying to fix Marth's crown. Ike never liked the feeling of being able to do nothing, so he had done something. He had since given the fixed crown to Master Hand who had passed it back to its rightful owner.

"Do you know what Master Hand found?" Ike asked as they began walking again.

"No, I don't think he has told anyone, aside from Eroc and perhaps the R.O.B.s"

They did not have time for any further conversation as they entered the dining hall. Master Hand was already hovering above the raised dais at the end of the room and the two swordsmen headed towards the large group of smashers already gathered there.

When they all had arrived Master Hand began to speak.

"After a thorough investigation we have come to the conclusion that it was, in fact sabotage. Not only was the damage consistent with such an event, but we uncovered two other pieces of evidence that indicate sabotage."

He signaled to the two R.O.B.s who stood beside him and they headed out into the audience.

"Link of Hyrule," Master Hand suddenly called, "Hold your hands out and stand down."

Link's eyes went wide in startled confusion. Puzzled, he did as he was bid and held his hands palm out only to have them seized by a R.O.B and twisted behind his back to be held in a vice like grip. Link winced and stared up in confusion at Master Hand. His questioning stare was only one of many.

"Link of Hyrule, you are under suspicion for the sabotage of the Mii Games."

"What?" Link found himself asking in an airy tone of shock, and he was not the only one.

Master Hand gestured for silence and then he spoke.

"Not only were the systems sabotaged but, four Miis from Cruel Smash were deliberately sent to the stage. Consequently, they were the ones who were responsible for causing the most injury to Marth. When I interviewed them as to why they were even there, they said that they received a note that was supposed to have been from me, telling them that it was mandated that they take part in the game or lose their spot as fighters. It said that Marth had filed a complaint against them for their lack of skill and, in order for them to remain as fighters they had to defeat him. They gave me the letter in question. I analyzed it and checked the handwriting in it against that of all the smashers here who can write and found a match. The script is a perfect match to your handwriting, Link." Before anyone could respond to this momentous announcement, Master Hand continued without pause.

"Also, the vague description of the attacker that Marth was able to provide matches you as well. Though he could not fully see who stole his weapon. He remembered vaguely seeing green. He also saw that his attacker wore brown fingerless gloves and that their hand glowed in the shape of a triangle. Also, this person had some magic abilities or magic inside them that allowed them to move inside the warp beam when activated.

"All those are condemning points, but by far the most condemning is this: the same type of device that we use to record matches as moving images was in the control room. Though it was damaged we were able to salvage most of it, enough to actually see the one responsible."

Master Hand held up a data pad. On the screen, Link saw a fuzzy rendition of himself with Marth before the match. Then he saw himself leave as he had done to chase the shadow. His mouth dropped open when what looked like him reentered the room just as Marth was starting to warp away. Then the recorded 'Link' sided up to the Altean Prince, reached in the beam and stole his sword in the mere heartbeat it took before Marth warped away. Then the 'Link' faded away as the screen blacked out for a moment. When the image returned, Link saw the rendition of himself wielding Marth's sword against the Mii game consuls and systems, effectively destroying them.

When it was finished, Link shook his head in almost frantic denial. He suddenly felt the eyes of almost everyone in the room directed upon him in shock and anger. However the worst of all was the disappointment in the eyes of some of the younger smashers who looked up to him, like Toon Link and Ness. They stared at him with such aghast disappointment that it made his heart sink in his chest even as his mouth formed a desperate protest.

"It wasn't me! That can't have been me, I was-"

"We know your story about chasing after some weird shadow creature roaming the mansion," Eroc interrupted. "You have no alibi; no one can vouch for you. And also, doesn't such an excuse just seem a little too convenient?"

"I didn't do it! I wouldn't do it!" Link practically shouted. He frantically cast his gaze around at the group of smashers around him, desperately seeking for anyone who might believe him.

"If Link says that he didn't do it, then he didn't do it," a voice said calmly but determinedly beside him.

Link turned to meet the steady gaze of Ike.

"We all know Link, and this is simply out of character. Also, Marth is one of his best friends. It just doesn't make sense."

There came a few murmurs of doubt from the crowd and then Eroc stepped forward, his voice dripping condescension.

"The what, Ike of Crimea, is this?" he demanded, pointing to the recorded figure on the screen.

Ike's eyes narrowed in anger as he stepped forwards.

"I don't know. What _is_ that?" he demanded back in the same tone, "because it sure isn't Link."

"How can it not be Link?" Eroc spluttered. "It looks like him, walks like him, and the triforce of courage on his hand lets him move in the beam. Do you think that anyone else in the world has such a mark?"

"It's not Link, because he wouldn't do that," Ike said stubbornly, "So instead of trying to pin the blame on him, maybe you should find the person or thing that actually did do it!"

"I don't need to find what's already there!"

Ike took a step forward, "Look here, you pompous-"

Robin interrupted the heated argument before it got any further, her murky eyes glinting slightly with some unreadable expression.

"It does all look condemning, but I agree with Ike, there should be more evidence. Whoever was in that image recording stole Marth's sword. I think that if the sword was located it could shed some light in this matter."

"Robin is right," Master Hand spoke up. "I will lead a search party of R.O.B.s to locate the sword, whilst all the rest of you remain here so as not to interfere."

He signaled to the R.O.B who was holding Link and the robot moved him towards the side wall of the dining hall so he could sit there whilst the R.O.B stood guard over him. Ike followed so that he also stood nearby, ignoring Eroc's warning glare.

Master Hand left the room then with the other R.O.B.s, locking the door behind him.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks again for reading, as usual feedback is appreciated. So, not so very much action in this chapter, but there will soon be some, I promise. I just needed to set some things up. I'd like to thank my history teacher for this chapter; it seems that all that stuff about the different philosophers is so drummed into my head by now that I cannot even escape it when I seek the refuge of my imagination. XD The joys of School XD

 **Question:** Is there any particular video game character you would like to see added to Smash Bros?


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** This chapter is actually pretty long, sorry about that. I just couldn't seem to find the right spot to end it until I got to the fifteenth page on a word document.

 **telesoap:** I have the same problem, there are just too many to choose from. :) Thanks for the review!

 **BatmanSwiss:** It's like you can see the future (have you been peeking at my note page XD ) It is convenient indeed. Thanks for the review!

 **silverheartlugia2000** : Yup, if you are trying to frame someone getting rid of the psychics would be smart; I didn't think that Ness could read people, but I am not overly familiar with the EarthBound series, am I wrong? If so I should fix it. Yeah, fixed it, thanks for pointing that out! And thanks for reviewing!

 **InkWoven:** I'm glad you liked it; it seems to me that those two would be the types to enjoy such conversations. I based their philosophers off of Socrates and Aristotle cause I thought a few of their ideas matched their perspective cultures a bit. I find it fascinating too actually XD Yay! Finally somebody caught it! Thanks for the review!

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Truth From a Certain Point of View**

Link sat with his back to the wall, his arms beginning to ache from the restraints that bound his wrists. He found himself harboring no real desire to look up at the faces in the room. He could see the metal base of a R.O.B on the ground beside him and the sight made him feel a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He turned his bowed head slightly in the other direction and saw the toe of one of Ike's boots. He decided suddenly that he much preferred to look that way. That sight calmed him a bit, but not enough for him to be able to ignore the multitude of stares directed on him.

Finally, he could take it no longer and raised his head a little to look straight into the big open, yet sad and confused eyes of Kirby. He moved his gaze upwards further to see Yoshi and Mario staring at him with almost the same expression as Kirby. That look had a way of making him feel as if he had let them all down.

Then there was Lucina. Link winced as he saw the betrayal horror and anger in her eyes; but that was not overly surprising when he thought on it. Marth was her hero after all, her family. All the laughter and awe was gone from her face. It was true that they hadn't had time to become best of friends, but he had liked her from the start. She was even more serious and literal than Zelda was and her cute inability to spot teasing or jokes instantly, unlike Samus, made her immeasurably fun to tease. It was partly because of this that she didn't believe him when he told her recently that he really was not a manakete, despite his pointy ears. He had thought that she was starting to see him as a friend, but obviously no longer.

Higher still, brought him to Samus's face which was surprised, but mostly questioning. It was almost if she were silently asking him exactly what he was doing and why he was doing it. Pikachu, who was sitting on her head, just looked broken hearted. Link, found himself desperately wising that Zelda were here.

Suddenly, the wait was over and Master Hand re-entered the room. His arrival was much quicker than everyone had anticipated. Behind him, followed the R.O.B.s, and one of them was holding a sword. They followed Master hand to the platform where Eroc still stood.

"Based on the previous evidence against him, I endeavored to search the room belonging to Link and Ike first and had no need to search further." Master Hand informed everyone almost despondently. "I found it wedged behind Link's headboard."

Link's mouth dropped open at this revelation and once again the Smashers began to mutter amongst themselves.

"Let me see!" Eroc suddenly commanded the R.O.B holding the weapon and the robot tossed it over before Samus and Captain Falcon's sudden cries could stop him. Eroc caught the sword deftly, holding it with the skillful and easy control of a master swordsman. Robin's eyes seemed to flicker slightly, though Eroc did not see it. Instead he looked, puzzled, at Samus and Captain Falcon's outburst.

"Why did you tell him to stop?"

"Because, that sword could just have been planted there by someone else," Captain Falcon said.

Samus nodded, "In both the Captain's and my era, there is a very simple way to find out who put the sword where they did. Every creature has a different fingerprint."

"If the sword was studied, the prints could be found on it and you could see for sure," Captain Falcon finished.

Master Hand nodded. "I have heard of this method before. In the interest of covering all possible bases I will have one of my R.O.B.s search right now."

Eroc's eyes widened in an expression of new-found understanding. He shot an arrogant glance towards Ike and then handed the sword back to the R.O.B.

"Though I personally feel that any more evidence will be redundant, feel free to search. Then we shall know for sure," Eroc said, still glaring at the steadfast mercenary who merely crossed his arms and met him glare for glare.

"Once I have the information," Master Hand said, "I will call another meeting and it will be decided what shall be done. Until then, Link shall first come with me so I can get his prints and then he shall be confined to quarters and put under guard. Ike, for your own safety, you can become the temporary roommate of Captain Falcon until all this is settled.

~x~X~x~

It was later that day when the R.O.B.s and Eroc came back with the results of the finger print test: positive. Link's fingerprints were on the hilt of the sword. When Master Hand informed him of this disturbing fact, Link tried in vain to tell him that the test could not be right for he had never before in his life touched Marth's sword. However, his protests were to no avail.

In the eyes of most everyone he was now irrefutably guilty. All he could do now was wait for Master Hand to make the announcement that would lead to his expulsion from the mansion, the games, and his friends. He sat dejectedly on his bed, locked in his and Ike's shared room alone, aside from the guards on the inside and the ones stationed without.

The sinking dread in his heart was only matched by one other, the Crimean mercenary who stood resolutely outside the door amongst the guards, hoping in vain that just his presence or near proximity might somehow help his friend trapped alone inside, a friend that he knew was innocent, a friend who he could hardly imagine not having at his side. And he knew that, were he in Link's position, he would be happier knowing that someone was waiting with him, even if they couldn't speak or see each other.

Because of his refusal to budge, he missed Master Hand's announcement stating that, sometime after he delivered the news of Link's irrefutable guilt to Marth, visitors could be allowed to see him again, since the real perpetrator was confined to quarters.

~x~X~x~

"We know who it was that sabotaged the stage and stole your sword," Master Hand announced quietly.

"All the evidence we have uncovered is irrefutable," Eroc said more forcefully.

Marth tried to painfully ease himself up into more of a sitting position. If there was one thing that made him uncomfortable, it was people looming over him when he felt slightly vulnerable.

Though he gave no outward sign, a tight knot of foreboding and apprehension began to form inside him. He found himself dreading to hear what he had been inwardly denying since the moment he had found himself unarmed on the stage. Surly what he had thought he had seen had just been a trick of the mind. He had, after all, just been talking to Link before the accident so it made sense that his eyes might have just tricked him into believing that-

"You sword was found in Link's room," Eroc handed the blade to Marth and he found himself gripping it hard.

"His fingerprints were on the blade and there is this."

Marth carefully lay the sword aside and took the object from Eroc's hands. It was one of those moving picture pads used to replay data from matches, he saw.

"We finally managed to salvage the recorded feeds from the control room."

Marth watched silently and did not so much as blink through the entire duration of the recording. When it was finished, he lowered the pad so that it lay flat. He closed his eyes for a moment, his face painstakingly calm and expressionless. When his eyes opened again their focus was set fixedly on something in the distance. He spoke softly.

"It was Link?" he asked, dreading to hear such affirmation.

"Yes, there can be no doubt."

"I see," he said finally. There was an almost imperceptible tremor in his voice as well as his manner. The half of his face that was unmarred seemed to grow paler and he let the pad finally slip from his fingers. He blinked once and then continued to stare ahead at nothing. Every now and then his face flickered with some unidentifiable emotion but, other than that, he did not move or speak. To those watching it almost appeared like he was working his way through a complicated mathematical problem in his head. Finally Master Hand spoke.

"I know this must be hard for you seeing as Link was one of your closer friends. You probably wish to have some time alone to think."

"I would be grateful," Marth's reply was soft and almost halting.

Master Hand and Eroc took their leave and quietly shut the door behind them. Only then did Marth's composure finally slip to reveal an expression of quiet misery. He clenched his trembling, bandaged hands for a moment before opening them and burying his face in them.

He had been betrayed before in his lifetime, many times: to the cost of his kingdom and his father's life, to the cost of war, to the cost of friendships and lives. So the feeling itself was not really new. It was however, a feeling that he had hoped never to experience again, and was one of the reasons that he was a bit slow when it came to forming extremely close friendships. He had never wanted to feel it again, especially not because of Link. The Hylian had earned his respect as well as his trust and friendship time and time over. But there was no denying the truth. He hadn't wanted to believe those other betrayals when they had happened either, but that hadn't negated the fact that they _had_ happened.

Without it really being a conscious decision on his part, he found himself wracking his mind to find the answer to a single question and that was simply: why? He knew for a fact for all the time that he and Link were friends that Link had not been pretending. He just didn't lie. As a ruler of men and someone who practiced politics, he had become pretty skilled at telling when someone was lying to him. Link acted the same, his mannerisms were the same, and his eyes were the same no matter who he talked to; a liar's weren't. So either he was lying to everyone about everything all the time or he wasn't lying.

So, if everything that he had inferred about Link's character since the day that they met was still true, then he wouldn't do something like this without a reason. Was he blackmailed into it, like what had happened to Marth's knight Abel? Although the thought was appealing it didn't seem right. Based on stories he had heard from Zelda and from Link, and from what he had observed himself, he knew that Link wasn't the type to cater to blackmail. He was similar to Ike in that sense, reckless, unwilling to believe that there was such a thing as a no win scenario. If given an ultimatum between two people he would immediately believe that there would be a way to save everyone. In fact he had done just that a few times in his life. No, it couldn't be blackmail.

All of this left him with only one final logical option and that was that it was he who had done something. He had unintentionally hurt Link enough to provoke him to such actions. But Marth couldn't for the life of him, think of what he could have done. He would have thought that he would have been able to tell if he had made a blunder harmful enough to have hurt his friend badly enough for him to feel the need to retaliate as he had. Or if he was, in fact, so oblivious to his friend's feelings, he would have thought that Link would have been forthright enough to tell him so. If not, it meant that Link was much better at lying and hiding his feelings than Marth had previously thought, thereby nullifying his previous points.

He had just argued himself into a hole, he realized. No matter what angle he started from, no matter the careful logic he applied, he found he could not reason his way thought such an unreasonable set of actions. Had Link been lying to him or had he hurt Link somehow? Why would Link do this or what had he done to provoke him? What was he missing? Why?

The questions hammered around his mind like a herd of angry manaketes and they refused to stop. All those thoughts and doubts plagued his mind until they began to hurt him as much as his wounds did though not in any physical sense. He did not realize that he had sat up, despite the pain in his chest and side, grimacing and leaning forwards slightly, his hands fisted tightly in his hair either side of his face.

He did not realize it until he felt a larger pair of hands encircle his and gently pull them away from his face with a soft cry of, "Mama mia Marth, don't be-a hurting yourself!"

The voice and touch permeated his mind-locked focus and he found himself looking into the concerned eyes of Mario and just behind him, Luigi. He hadn't heard them come in, he dimly realized. The thought that he had let his warrior's vigilance slip embarrassed him and that served only to mingle with the embarrassment of being seen in such a vulnerable state of mental and physical disarray.

He went to apologize but the words caught in his throat to stick there, lodged with grief and other emotions and made it so he dare not speak. He shut his mouth and then set his mind to the task of lying back down and calming his admittedly uneven breathing.

Mario let go of his hands then, as if silently asking if he would be alright now. Marth nodded mutely at him and the concerned plumber stepped back but not fully; he lay a gentle hand on Marth's shoulder. He said nothing and Marth was grateful. Somehow that simple gesture seemed better than if Mario had spent hours speaking unwanted pleasantries and apologies or words of wisdom. Honestly, Marth did not want to hear any of that. He glanced further upwards to see that Mario and Luigi weren't the only ones who had come. Samus was also there with Pikachu on her shoulder. Pit and Lucina were standing not too far behind her.

With an effort, Marth set about gathering his scattered and unsure emotions in order to pull himself together. A ruler of people could not afford to let himself slip so far, it was dishonorable and irresponsible, not to mention dangerous. He smiled at all of them and spoke a soft greeting, which was eagerly returned. Pikachu leaped off of Samus's shoulder and onto the bed, making himself comfortable on Marth's pillow.

"Sorry for just barging in," Samus gifted him with a rare grin, "we did knock but you didn't answer. How are you feeling?"

"Quite alright actually, thank you for asking," he replied easily, slipping back smoothly into his usual friendliness and manners.

Luigi stepped forwards to give him a card he had obviously made himself, and Samus pulled up a spare chair and made herself comfortable, throwing off some of her closed off mannerisms to chat with him, successfully diverting his previously dark thoughts. Marth realized what she was doing and was grateful for it.

It was not long before they all had to leave because of the healer's strict attentiveness to short visiting hours and they all bid him farewell for the rest of the day. Lucina also offered parting words of well wishing, though he could tell that she seemed really upset about something. Then he remembered that she and Link were just starting to become friends. At the thought of Link, he suddenly found that he was glad that they were leaving; he was just so tired.

~x~X~x~

Master Hand called what he said would be the last meeting regarding Link and his sabotage, the very next morning, after breakfast had been served.

"After much deliberation, I have come to a decision regarding Link," Master Hand began, scanning the room to see that all the smashers were present, except for Ike and Link, and surprisingly Robin as well, he found himself glad that they were. "He is, of course, to be permanently expelled from the mansion and games. But I am loathed to let him off with such a light form of remonstration when another of my smashers was brought so close to death because of his actions. Even now the smasher in question faces a long painful road to recovery, in mind as well as body, I fear. Having a friend turn on one like that isn't something that a person can just 'get over' easily."

At his words, the few smashers who had taken the opportunity to visit Marth the day before seemed to silently concur, especially Lucina. She had lived in a dying world, where there was not a single person who hadn't lived through some form of loss. Consequently, she had become adept at recognizing emotional turmoil even if a person was skilled at hiding it.

"This is why I decided I could not go at that, Eroc and Crazy Hand agree." Master Hand continued.

"But there is another, even more pressing reason why he cannot;" Eroc cut in, moving forward slightly, "Master Hand created these games to be an international place of safety and commerce, a place beyond the sting of wars and bite of rivalries. If Link is merely allowed to go on his way with no other consequence for his actions, other than just leaving the mansion, think for a moment about the message that would send. It basically says that this is the perfect place to come to get revenge on rivals or kill your enemies, for you can get close to them and get rid of them with no other consequence than just getting kicked out of the games. All your safety and the safety of your comrades is now at terrible risk."

Most everyone in the room suddenly looked around at themselves. There were indeed rivalries here, not to mention people with actual enmity and hatred for some others. So far, Master Hand's tight control, the promise of riches, and openings that the games offered were enough to keep the underlying tensions at bay or at least controlled. However, Link's actions had proven that things weren't as secure and controlled as they had previously thought. It was a valid point to assume that Link's actions could result in much more acts of violence if something weren't done about it, for he had created an opening.

"This is why I have decided to act for all the smashers here, for Marth, and in the name of fairness!" Master Hand announced. "This afternoon Link will face the consequences of his actions before he is expelled from here. We will see how much he likes his cruelty when he has to face it himself. Perhaps then he will change his tune. This is my ruling and here in my games, my mansion, this ruling is beyond contestation.

"Sometimes and example needs to be made in order to insure the safety of others. I understand that a few of you more gentle hearted smashers might not agree whole-heartedly with this show of absolute fairness, so I will just say now that if you have a problem with my ruling then you are free to leave here but do not expect and invitation back."

At his words, a line of R.O.B.s rolled forwards slightly and menacingly, making the veiled threat in the message more obvious.

"You can rest assured in the fact that I will only be acting in the name of fairness," Master Hand added in a more gentle tone, his words conciliatory and reasonable. "I merely want Link to have a taste of his own medicine; it will bring retribution for his crime and deter further people from acting in kind."

The smashers watched him finish his speech in awe filled silence. His words and ruling were a bit harsh, but they were nothing but fair, weren't they? Many of the smashers had grown to be almost dependent on the income they made at the games, if not for themselves then for their people, their countries, their families and friends. Also, Master Hand's word here was akin to law; he owned every aspect of the games. He was the smash realm's preverbal king and even had a force to back him, with his R.O.B.s. Though it was not by any means an indomitable force, especially not to the smashers, it was formidable.

Besides, Link was guilty of the crime that had been committed, it had been proven so. If he had to experience the same thing he willfully forced upon another, it would only be fair. This situation after all, did call for some form of retribution to take place. It sounded right and yet there were a few of the smasher's hearts whispering softly that this wasn't as right as it sounded. However, all things considered, they would all lose and risk so much if they actively disagreed, and for what, the sake of a convicted criminal? For that was what Link was. He had uprooted their way of life, safety, and the safety of their friends; was it worth it?

Though many of them found that, deep down, they did not agree with Master Hand's ruling about Link, guilty or no, they lacked any solid foundation on which to stand. None of them were particularly eager to be the first man cut down for voicing an objection, even if his fallen body would serve as the base for others to stand on. It was because of this that they could form no cohesive sense of unity that would stop this. They also did not have the time it would take to organize themselves to bring a stop to this, as it was going to happen in only a matter of hours.

~x~X~X~

It was nearing afternoon, but Ike still maintained his stalwart position by the door to his and Link's shared room. He had hardly left all morning and had missed Master Hand's announcement of his intentions only about two hours ago. He sat with his back to the wall, running a whetstone over the blade of Ragnell, honing its edge and tending to the blade to keep it in perfect condition.

Truth be told, he had been doing that for most the morning and, in the back of his mind, he knew that the blade wasn't going to get any sharper or more polished. Also, for all the time that he had had the sword, its blade had never dulled nor tarnished. All his careful work really had no actual purpose, he thought wryly to himself. He knew he was only doing it because he hated to feel useless and idle in tense situations. He stared dully at the R.O. guarding the door and found himself suddenly wishing that there was something that he could do, for both Link and Marth.

He turned his head suddenly when he heard a commotion at the end of the hallway. He saw Master Hand followed by Eroc and a very long line of R.O.B.s. Ike stood to meet them, his curiosity peeked.

"What's going on, sir?" he asked Master Hand as he approached.

If a floating hand could ever really look suddenly hesitant, then Master Hand was managing it.

"Don't worry, I will get Link while you explain the situation to Ike," Eroc volunteered with a smile that bordered far too closely to an expression of gloating for Ike's liking.

Master Hand however, just looked relieved at the news and signaled for Eroc to proceed. Eroc in turn signaled ten of the line of R.O.B.s to follow him into the room where Link was being held.

"As, you know Ike, It has been proven that Link is guilty," Master Hand began in a conciliatory voice.

"Proven in theory only," Ike retorted, his brows drawing together.

Master Hand made a shoeing motion as if brushing Ike's claim and faith aside as a trivial matter. He then began to calmly explain his decision. Ike felt his blood run cold and then, just as swiftly, begin to boil. Through his rage, he was aware of the fact that his hand was beginning to stray towards the hilt of his sword. He immediately checked that motion, whilst striving to keep the roiling anger out of his manner. Reckless he may be, but stupid he was not. Timing would be everything in a situation like this. Master Hand seemed to be waiting for some reply from him.

"I see," Ike said finally, "I'm only sorry that it has to come to this."

Though his words were genuine, they were not intended the way Master Hand interoperated it. Ike was not going to stand for this, he was going to try and stop it. He was sorry, but only sorry that he and Master Hand were now officially on opposite sides.

Eroc stood tall in the center of the room flanked by R.O.B.s. Link looked up from where he sat chained by one wrist to his bed. Dull eyes lifted to meet his. The once bright vivacious blue of them seemed almost clouded with a seething undercurrent of anger, grief, and a touch of guilt. He did not speak, merely stared flinchingly at Eroc, as if dreading to hear whatever he would say, knowing that it was not going to be good news.

"You are to come with me," Eroc announced finally, "And you might want to say goodbye, because you will not be coming back."

Link winced and then rose slowly, allowing himself to be unchained from the headboard only to be held inescapably on both sides by the viselike grip of two R.O.B.s.

"I am to be expelled then?" he asked quietly.

Eroc nodded.

Something that almost appeared to be like the spark of a flame began to take hold in Link's tired looking eyes and they narrowed, all their anger flaring to life and focusing on him.

"Before I go, I would like to know one thing," he said quietly.

"And what might that be?" Eroc asked with a degree of condescension in his voice.

Link's eyes narrowed further, "I want to know what you think you will gain from all of this," he said with an unfriendly smile spreading slowly across his face.

Eroc felt himself freeze suddenly at the hylian's words and turned to face him, trying to hide his surprise.

"I'm sure I don't know what you are even talking about."

"And here I thought that you did…" A mock frown spread across his fair face replacing the false smile. "I mean, you are the one orchestrating this whole thing, after all." He gave up his false pretense of confusion, his tone leveling. "I am no fool, and thanks to this frame job, I have had quite a lot of time to think. You and I both know that it wasn't me who injured Marth."

"Oh? And what makes you say that?"

"Of everyone, you seem to be the one pushing my guilt the most, which, I suppose, would not too out of the ordinary if you were hugely into laws and people's rights, or really close to Marth, but you simply aren't. It's not that hard to figure out when you look at it. So, I repeat, what exactly do you stand to gain?"

Link regarded him calmly seriously, confidently.

It made Eroc feel a certain measure of unease and quite a bit of anger.

"Maybe all I stand to gain is my own amusement, Hero of Twilight!"

"I will not let you harm anyone else."

"You can't even dream of stopping me. You're in no position to even think you can."

"I will find a way," Link said coolly.

"Clever you might be, but that won't save you, as Robin loves to say, 'I'm always two steps ahead.' You can stand here as bold as you like now, but I think you might change your tune in the arena."

"Arena?" the sure confidence in Link's eyes faltered with puzzlement.

"Oh, did I forget to say? I suppose I did," Eroc sneered, feeling his own confidence and sense of superiority returning. "You are not going to be expelled, well, not only. Before you go, you are going to be made an example of, so no one else tries to do what you have done and so Marth can have some form of justice. You will be taken to the Mii stage without your weapons and with the exact same conditions Marth had to face because of your sabotage. No weapons, no personal shielding, no help until the shields lower. It's only fair. Everyone agreed that it was the right thing to do."

"Everyone s-said… what?" Link stammered, his eyes widening with shock at this news. Up until now he had neither tried to run or escape. Running would only give grounds to the unfounded charges against him, he had not wanted that. Besides, running away would be little different than being expelled. But now, he knew he was in more than danger. Then he shook his head, "just because they don't think I'm worth saving, don't think for a moment that I think of them the same."

"What you think is irrelevant, there is nothing you can do, it's far too late."

"I don't believe there is such a thing as too late," he countered softly, but Eroc ignored him and turned away.

Eroc left the room then and all the R.O.B.s followed after him, Link trapped in between the two endmost ones. However Link wasn't going quietly any longer. He struggled in vain to break free of the grips of the two robots holding him, cursing the fact that Eroc had been smart enough not to tell him of his ultimate plan until he was in the unbreakable grip of the R.O.B.s. His desperate efforts did nothing but chafe his wrists, so much so that he felt a very slight trickle of blood drip down his right hand.

Knowing that his efforts weren't working, he changed tack and tried to stop the robots' inexorable motion forwards instead. He dug his feet into the slick wood of the dormitory floor, seeking desperately for a foot hold.

The soles of his leather boots found footing and he strove with all his strength to halt their forward progress. Muscles straining, he found his ploy to be working until his boots began to lose traction. Slowly, he began to be moved forwards towards the open door and the hallway just outside. The opening drew nearer, and nearer, until the cold light from outside was blotted out by a figure standing there. The R.O.B.s stopped moving forwards leaving Link about just under the doorjamb, staring out into the wide hallway of the mansion before him.

Ike stood with his back to Link, his red cape stirring slightly in the cross breeze from the hallway. His body was in a fighter's crouch, his sword up to threaten those who filled the hallway before him, Master Hand, Eroc, and the R.O.B.s.

"You won't take him," Ike menaced in a low voice.

"Ike," Master Hand tried to reason, "just calm down and step aside. Choose your loyalty well. You don't need to do this."

"Yes, I do. I will not just stand by while you harm and innocent person. You are the one who made the divide clear. If this is what you stand for then I will never stand with you!"

"Ike," Master Hand's tone blackened, "Put you sword away and stand aside or I will be forced to subdue you."

"Then do it, because I am not backing down," Ike challenged back.

"We could always try negotiating, you know," Link's voice called out from behind Ike.

"There will be no negotiation!"Master Hand twitched with anger and sent three of his R.O.B.s forwards.

They made a rush at Ike, their arms swinging towards him simultaneously. It was a mistake. Ike ducked underneath their initial attack and swung forwards with his own. Ragnell, the blade strong and sharp enough to pierce blessed armor, had no problems biting into the robots at their weak point.

They fell back, circuits misfiring and crackling around the damage, but they were just the first wave. Ten more began moving forwards. Ike held his sword above his head, point towards the ground, concentrating hard in order to gather the flames above his head, gather, hold, and strengthen them enough to perform the move known as eruption.

The R.O.B.s were familiar with this and instantly stopped moving forwards, desperately staying just out of the range of the flaming sword. They planned to stay out of reach until it became too hot or caused Ike to much mental and physical strain to hold it any longer.

"Contact!" Ike growled through clenched teeth.

"Forwards!" Link shouted from his position behind Ike, recognizing one of their battle codes.

"Three, left two!" Ike shouted back.

Link gathered himself, bracing his weight on his entrapped hands and swung his lower body and legs forward in a controlled double kick, propelling Ike forward and slightly to the left just as Ike brought the flames down violently with his sword, causing a huge eruption of fire to explode outwards and upwards. The fire took out six of the ten R.O.B.s on the left side of the half-ring that surrounded him. They tumbled to earth, thoroughly overheated, circuits frying and metal-plating scorched.

Ike turned instantly to face the remaining four and engaged the first two in a heated battle, backdropped by the sounds of Master Hand and Eroc's cries for reinforcements and battle orders.

Ike was fighting side on to Link and Link could see that the two other R.O.B.s were beginning to flank him. Link called out attack directions in their easy code, developed by long hours training and fighting side by side. This allowed Ike to more than accurately take out the enemies behind him, without having to take his eye off of the ones in front of him.

The next wave of R.O.B.s arrived just as Ike incapacitated the last of the second wave. These next one did not even try to get close, instead they began firing projectiles at him from a distance. Whilst Ike was hard pressed, trying to block and deflect all the incoming projectiles, Master Hand gathered himself for an attack that sent a wave of air forwards. The attack blasted Ike away from his protective place in front of Link, through a cluster of robots and into the wall at the very end of the hallway. Link winced at the harsh sound of contact.

Eroc gave a swift order and the robots converged on Ike, shooting a weapon that Eroc had devised himself. It was similar to a gooey bomb in that it stuck to anything on contact, but it deployed in the shape of a net and detonated with a nasty electric current instead of an explosion. There were too many missiles for Ike to counter or block at one time, Link saw.

"No!" he yelled as he tried again to break free, but it was too late. Ike's voice rose in an anguished cry as three of the missiles struck him, trapping his arms against the wall and one landing just below his chest. The electric currents crackled and fizzled as they coursed over his body. Ragnell dropped from numbed fingers. Suddenly Ike's cry of pain turned into one of determined anger—a last ditch effort. He threw himself forwards with all his strength and managed to free one hand from the wall before consciousness left him.

Swiftly the robots moved forwards and secured his limp form. Link saw Eroc look from the destruction that littered the hallway and then back at the mercenary who was just starting to waken. Eroc's face set in a dark scowl of anger.

"I will take care of Ike, and call for some help for the R.O.B.s, so you can escort Link."

"Thank you Eroc," Master Hand said. He signaled the R.O.B.s holding Link to follow him. Though he fought, he could not stop their motion this time. Link's last view was of Ike struggling just as much as he was as he was dragged in the opposite direction, shouting furiously at those who held him, at Eroc, and Master Hand. Link felt his heart sink all over again.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thank you all for reading, even though it was so long XD as usual, I love getting feedback. I actually based some of the fight scene with Link and Ike against the R.O.B.s on how my sister and I fight when we play together. When you fight hard opponents they usually wise up to Ike eruption move and stay back, just out of range, but their staying back doesn't work when you have a friend to push you forwards just as your releasing the flames XD So, my inspiration for this chapter is people in positions of power using fear as an excuse to justify questionable actions, I'd like to _thank_ them for giving me such good material to help my writing XD

 **Question:** Who is your favorite character to play with in Smash?


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** First off, I'd really like to thank all of you guys for your support; you truly have no idea how encouraging it is. Thanks you guys :) I had a lot of people asking me last week about Ganondorf and his thoughts and opinions on this matter, so I made sure to include him in this chapter. This chapter is actually quite a bit shorter than usual, sorry about that, but I couldn't think of a better place to end it. Also, since last chapter was so long, they kind of even each other out X) *hehee*

 **telesoap:** I like playing with those guys too though I've never played with Ryu before, how does he handle? Thanks for the review!

 **silverheartlugia2000:** True that! Hmmm, I actually never really considered it. I really have no idea. Based on the way they animated it I would think if it were ever to be removed than his wolf form might have scarring, but since the shackle doesn't so much as appear when he's in human form, I'm not sure his human form would have the scarring from a shackle that wasn't ever there. It's interesting to think about though. :) What do you think? Thanks for the review, it brightened my day considerably.

 **Mew29240:** Well poor Link is being set up so those in charge of his trial really have no interest in really finding the truth after all. Perhaps some other smashers will be willing to help defend him…I promise to answer all of those questions within the next three chapters (scout's honor) :) Thank you for the review!

 **Guest:** Well, I can honestly say I wasn't planning to do that, since I had just considered it a costume (since he doesn't actually use the mask and take on the actually shape (height) or weapons of the Fierce Deity. It is a really cool thought though… I like it! Thank you for the review!

 **Fancypants:** Dawww thanks :3 What you said really brightened my day to read. I'm really glad to hear that you are enjoying it, it really make it all worthwhile. Yep we're about hallway though. Thanks for the review and your kind words :3

 **InkWoven:** I'm glad you liked the fight scene (I'm always worried about those) To answer your question about Marth, why he isn't instantly sure of Link's innocence like Ike: the way I see it (and therefore am writing it) he just went through a pretty traumatic experience, he actually thought that he saw Link take his sword, and the 'evidence' that Master Hand showed him only re-enforced it all. But the most deciding factor is the fact that he hasn't gotten the chance to talk face to face with Link yet or look him in the eyes. Don't give up on him yet though, I'll get to Marth more next week, promise. I love to play with Link, Ike, Marth, Zelda, Robin, and Samus best, but I do like Pikachu too. Thank you for the review!

 **TheShadowEclipse:** Thank you so much for what you said, it was really really encouraging! I'm glad that you are liking it so far. To be honest, I kind of wrote this in minor rebellion to the way their characters have been typically presented in the Smash Bros Fanfics (I suppose cracks and different representations aren't at all bad but, to me, the characters are so much more than that) I've been trying pretty hard to keep them as close to their actual characters as I can (it's good to hear I've been at least partially successful.) I'm glad you like my headcannon about the shields and stuff (I feel vindicated XD ) I think I'd be cool to have Soren as a playable character. I've always been slightly annoyed that Ragnell isn't ranged in smash, it makes everything that much harder (but I suppose it adds to the challenge and therefore the fun) I'm sorry It wasn't so clear, I'll fix it to make it more so. Thanks for pointing it out. It being a mansion and all, I expected the hallways to be quite large thus allowing space for a smallish ring of enemies and I meant Link to be in the room just about underneath the doorjamb. Thanks again for the reviews!

* * *

 **Chapter 5: The Game's Fruition**

Eroc led the R.O.B.s and their struggling prisoner towards one of the many lockers in the storage rooms. Master Hand would need all of his available R.O.B.s to keep order, meaning that he couldn't just spare some as guards. So, because Master Hand's mansion lacked a dungeon, Eroc suspected that a steel locker would serve as a well enough substitute.

Quite a bit of effort and the use of another electric netting gooey bomb, finally saw the protesting mercenary trapped inside with the door shut and secured by three large sliding bolts on the outside. By now, all the commotion had made it so that many smashers had gathered in the storage room to see what was going on. Garbled word of Ike's rebellion was already being whispered amongst the spectators. Eroc straightened; his fight had left him feeling a bit worn. Worn but, at the same time, wholly satisfied.

In his opinion, it was well past time that Ike should have found himself in such a place. It really gave him an unmeasured sense of satisfaction to hear Ike's angry shouts as he threw himself, with as much force as he could gather in the admittedly cramped space, against the strong and well locked door.

"You brought this upon yourself by attacking Master Hand. You're not going to be getting out until you calm down and Master Hand decides to release you, so stop pounding!" He admonished the raging mercenary in the locker. The pounding and yelling only intensified.

"Oh, come now, Ike!" Eroc said louder before throwing his hands up in frustration and walking away. He had only gone a few paces before he turned back around, banging a fist on the metal prison to gain the mercenary's attention.

"Before I leave you, I just wanted to let you know that we are not going to be holding you responsible or perusing any disciplinary actions for you scene in the hallway. We understand that you are too emotionally compromised with your misplaced faith in your friend. As such, I can't bring myself to willfully punish someone who is so feeble minded and not emotionally stable. I'm sure you didn't know what you were doing and, that when your mind clears, you will see the error of your ways. Then you can apologize to everyone here, and thank me for my merciful outlook."

As soon as Eroc finished his speech, a horrified silence descended over all those present as the true import of Eroc's insulting words hit everyone who was listening. The ugly silence was only heightened by the fact that Ike too had ceased his pounding and angry shouted words. The ugly silence continued onwards for what seemed like hours though in reality it was a mere moment as eyes everywhere flicked from the metal locker that trapped the mercenary to the arrogant figure standing proudly before it, sneering at the cleverness of his own words.

Suddenly, the silence gave way to the ringing cracking sound of metal slamming violently into metal. The sheet metal front the locker bowed suddenly outwards at chest height, in the rough size and shape of a fist. It was a silent testament to the anger which had lent itself into the feat of strength required for such a massive yet precise blow.

The unexpected strike did wipe the sneer off of Eroc's face. He too joined the ranks of those watching in awe filled horror before he composed himself. His change in demeanor, though brief and quickly covered, showed that he did harbor some apprehension and perhaps the slightest trace of regret when it came to angering the Radiant Hero.

Gathering his supposed unlimited store of dignity, he turned and left the room, signaling for the R.O.B.s to follow him.

"The rest of you smashers, follow me as well. Master Hand requires your presence at the Mii Games Stadium."

The smashers following after him seemed uneasily unsettled by this whole turn of events, mostly because of the two heroes' villainous behavior- first there was Link's attempted murder and now Ike's attempted assassination of Master Hand."

One of the smashers, however, hesitated before he left the room, glancing back once at the now silent locker. His very young expressive face was set in a look of almost lost confusion. He was, quite simply, at war with himself. Frowning, he turned and fled the room, gripping the hilt of his small master sword with a nervous fervor.

~x~X~x~

Ganondorf sat in the stands surrounded by the other smashers, waiting for the upcoming show to begin. His keen yellow eyes scanned the stadium, never standing still for too long in any one place, and missing hardly anything. As his eyes were constantly moving, so too was his mind.

The Gerudo king was no fool; he was a warlord and a conqueror. After all, idiots never stood in positions of power unless they were nothing but puppets. He recognized a gambit for power when he saw one, and he saw one now. Someone was playing games, sewing dissension and using the means of fear and excuse of protection and fairness to justify the act of taking power. Master Hand and his friend Eroc's speech and show of dominance and force earlier in the day could be nothing else. But it wasn't just today, this was a deep routed gambit, and it had started days ago. But even its start had not for one moment fooled him.

There was absolutely no way that Link had brutally attacked his own friend. It was more than good policy to know ones enemy, and Ganondorf was relatively sure that he knew Link, knew what motivated him, knew how he liked to fight, and knew the code of honor that was a deciding factor behind all the choices Link made and actions that he took. Link was not the perpetrator in this instance, he was one of the targets one of the main targets. If fact, Ganondorf had an unsettling suspicion that they all were targets in one way or another.

He let out a soft contemptuous laugh at that, well, anyone who couldn't see this for what it was, was a target. Ganondorf hadn't said anything of his suspicions or conclusions to anyone, and why should he? None of the smashers had his loyalty and he was not naive enough, nor could he afford, to believe in friendship. He was interested in seeing how this was all going to play out, to see who would start to have the upper hand. For by doing that he could see if he could turn anything about this situation in his favor. And if not, he would not be taken for a fool or dominated—he would make a clean break. Whatever happened, he promised himself he would be ready.

~x~X~x~

There were crowds of people watching him. Many of whom were people he considered friends and comrades at arms and, yet, there had been few times in his life that he had ever felt this alone, so separated from everyone else. The sentiment as well as the thought filled him with a sense of righteous anger at this farce of justice, this mockery.

He directed burning eyes upon the figure that stood by Master Hand in the observer's box of the stadium. Link tilted his head upwards, proudly, the ridged line of his upright body exuding his defiance. He may have been unarmed, but anyone could see that he was still dangerous, simply by looking at him. It was a fact evidenced by the silence that overtook the stadium. The nervous hum of disconcerted sound that had been a constant background presence, ended so suddenly that it created an almost tangible feeling of disquiet. Eyes throughout the stadium crowd followed Link's line of sight to focus on the man, swathed in the confidence of his own arrogance, safe in the observation box.

It was because of this that the object of Link's attention finally returned his gaze. Link's lips drew back in a feral smile devoid of any kind of warmth or mirth, the snarl of a cornered wolf. Eroc took an unconscious step backwards as he understood the silent message of the blond hylian warrior: If this was to be some sort of cruel game that Eroc had cornered him in, then he would play- if only to yell aloud in the quiet of his defiance that this would not end here, this would not end today. It was a challenge uttered so loud in the tension filled stadium that everyone heard it, despite the fact that that it had been spoken without words and in total silence.

The blond warrior turned then, any feelings of dread or sorrow swathed and masked by his show and promise of rebellion. The warp portals opened like the portcullises of an ancient gladiatorial arena, foretelling doom. Link stood ready to meet the monsters that would spring forth from them, silently vowing that he would live to reclaim his sword, his freedom, his friends, and the truth. This board had long ago been set, the pieces already manipulated into this farce.

The final plays of this dark game began as four Mii's droped down from above, in a sickening parody to the way the Hundred Man Smash was supposed to work. The four of them charged forwards unflinchingly, their determination more than likely the result of some falsehood made in the form of a promise of status or glory.

Link readied himself. He had been trained in hand to hand combat, but he knew that it would be quite a bit more difficult than just that, especially since he and the Fighter Miis would be the only ones without weapons.

Brushing all doubts and other useless feelings aside, he set himself into the focus of the fight, shutting all else out. He was agile and fast, allowing him to dodge and block initial attacks and employ his own counter attacks. Steadily, he began to make his way though set after set of fighters.

As Marth had done before him, he managed to disarm a swordsman before throwing him from the stage. However, just as had happened to Marth, the moment he wielded the stolen blade against an oncoming Mii, the weapon shattered. The blade separated from the hilt in a pile of useless metal shards.

"Well, this is just lovely isn't it?" he asked rhetorically, looking up from the sword hilt in his hand to the Miis approaching him and then he shrugged, a smile lighting his face. During the war of Twilight he had always had Midna to talk with during stressful situations—In fact he had a sneaking suspicion that a lot of her sarcasm had rubbed off on him. And it had always been the same here with his friends. It had become almost a habit in battle a sort of coping method to help him focus and take his mind off the nearly assured darker outcomes of hopelessly unfair or desperate fights. So, having no one now, he found himself talking to his opponents.

"Actually, you probably would think it lovely, you know, since it gives you the advantage," he continued as he kicked the first approaching warrior and dodged the next. He frowned slightly, "Though I suppose I could make it work some for me, I've made do with less before, you know. This contest isn't exactly fair."

He managed to disarm another swordsman, slashed at him, and then collected the broken hilt from the weapon when it too shattered.

"Not that I expect you to do anything about it," he went on, circling the disarmed swordsman and his fighter partner. "It's not your problem, after all."

He held both hilts by the crosspiece, his palms over the place where the blades should have been, the tang and pummel of the hilts protruding between his fisted fingers like weird makeshift versions of what he had once heard Snake term as 'knuckledusters' last season.

Having done this, Link went straight on the attack, once more addressing the Mii's.

"But I take it that you would not mind if I leveled the playing field a bit, would you?" he asked as he struck forwards.

The metal hilts added weight and a nasty crushing sting to his punches. The two Mii's were flung from the stage. Link stared momentarily over the ledge at their falling forms as if waiting for an answer, before shrugging to himself.

"I guess I'll take that as a 'no' then."

He turned around. He had made it through about twelve rounds of Miis. He looked towards the warp gates an saw that instead of the traditional four he had grown accustomed to, he was greeted with the sight of ten Miis dropping down to face him.

"Ooooh, that's a bit nasty. I take it that this is where things start to get very fun." He smiled slightly again before slipping into a fighter's stance.

"Fun, that is, for everyone but me; and that, I think, is the most unfair part of it all. It really bites your know," he said with a frown and a sorrowful nod towards the three Miis he had just sent off the stage, and fought onwards.

He actually did manage to clear the stage at one point, but more and more fighters kept dropping in, faster than he could throw them off. Soon, he did not have the space he needed to fight cleanly against his opponents and he was beginning to feel the effects as he started to take hits. He desperately tried to hold his ground near a ledge in order to keep them from surrounding him but the fight was beginning to turn desperate and he knew he would not be able to hold out much longer.

Still he refused to give up or give in and, most especially, he refused give up either his hope or his mood of slightly mordant levity and he battled furiously onwards.

"Yup," he said to a gunner as he kicked him, "this is already getting to be not fun for me already." The gunner flew off the stage, "though at least a few of you are in the same sinking boat."

The warp portals flickered. Suddenly, before him, Miis were hit aside as two enraged blue Kritters raced towards him. Their wickedly long and sharp claws were poised for slashing.

"Moldarach," Link swore under his breath. "I take it these are my cruel smash substitutes then. Still, at least there aren't four… yet anyway."

Spying an opening, he jumped up to the platform above his head, judged the exact moment and then leaped from it and onto the back of one of the Kritters. He used his legs to pin the slashing arms down some while he attacked its scaly lizard head with the two sword hilts, trying to damage it through its shielding and armor-like scales.

Though his attacks didn't penetrate much, it did do something useful. The Kritter ran forwards almost blindly, flailing as it tried to shake his small aggressor off. Heedless of everything, the lizard sped forwards writhing and spinning, heading straight for the ledge of the platform. Link leaped off the lizard's back at the last possible moment leaving the creature to its fate of plummeting, knowing that if he fell with it, there would be no safety shielding or warp gate to save him from injury.

 _Well there's one instance where a Kritter is a preferable opponent to a Cruel Smash Mii fighter, I got a bit lucky there, they obviously weren't blessed with anything that could pass as an actual brain._ He thought without humor as he landed on the platform.

His moment of success was short lived as he found himself totally surrounded by enemies assailing him from all sides. The feral fear and desperation he had been trying to ignore began to well up inside him. He felt that hint of despair begin to take full root in his heart. There were just too many of them. He snarled in frustration; he still refused to give up, and refused to let his enemies win. While he defended against some Miis in fron,t another bowled into his back, sending him sprawling.

He rose to his feet only to feel a fighter kick his legs out from under him and send him headlong into the remaining enraged Kritter. Link tried to doge but there was no space for him to do so. He cried out as the creature's claws slashed across his chest. Without shielding there was nothing to keep them from slicing into him. The claws rent his chainmail in a few places to sink into the unprotected skin below, scratching him fairly deeply. However the chainmail did protect him quite a bit because, though the penetration was fairly deep, it was still a flesh wound, albeit a painful one.

He fell back, knowing he was finished, that this wasn't going to end well for him. The Miis were already rushing forwards to finish him off from behind whist the Kritter raised his claws for a downward strike. Head reeling, and breath fully knocked out of him, Link tried to cover his head with his hands and closed his eyes in seething hopelessness. It was over for him, he would wind up like Marth only there would be no one to come to his defense. He only hoped that Ike, Zelda, and all the other Smashers would be ok, that this wouldn't happen to them too. He had failed to save them as surely as he had failed to save himself.

The Kritter began to bring his wicked claws down with all the force of his swing behind them. Link grit his teeth, waiting for the pain to descend. Though his swimming vision and closed eyes he thought he saw a flash of light. A shadow fell across him followed by the clanging sound of metal on hardened bone. No blow fell on him, there was no sudden pain. He lifted his whirling head, momentarily unfocused eyes settling on a figure standing directly in front of him, stopping the Kritter's strike with upraised sword.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks for reading! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter despite it being a little on the short side. I promise that the next chapter will be longer.

I would like to thank my fifth grade teacher for giving me the inspiration for this chapter. It was her brilliant idea of shutting students in the coat closet when they displeased her or broke the rules that gave me the idea of what Eroc should do to Ike. Even though that happened to me only once, all's I can say is that I know his pain. XD Oh how we students dreaded to hear the infamous "GO TO THE CLOSET!" If, by chance, my fifth grade teacher is, in fact, reading this, allow me to say that I still maintain that I was innocent of any wrongdoing! *folds arms indignantly and looks suitably affronted*

 **Question:** Who is your least favorite character to play with?

I have a few, Olimar, Donkey and Diddy Kong, Jiggly Puff, Pac Man and Duck Hunt


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** Next chapter is up! So this one takes the story back in time a little bit, so I hope the flow is alright. It will answer the question of just who came to Link's rescue XD Special thanks to all my readers!

 **silverheartlugia2000:** For the purpose of a story I totally agree, damage does stay consistent after all. Thanks for the review!

 **BatmanSwiss:** I hope your right in your guess XD thanks for the compliment and the review!

 **Mew29240:** I'm glad you liked it; it warms my heart to hear X3. Don't worry; Link will get a chance to give Eroc some well deserved comeuppance.

* * *

 **Chapter 6: The Difference Between Them**

Marth woke feeling as worn-out as he had been when he had gone to sleep the night before. He cut his tired eyes to the left to look out the window and saw by the position of the sun that it was past noon. Despondently, he rolled onto his uninjured side, facing away from the window to stare blankly at the wall by his bed. He pulled his blanket up further over his shoulder though he was not cold. He let his breath out in a low miserable sigh.

He was distracted suddenly by a knock at his door. Rolling onto his back again and sitting up slightly, he called rather unenthusiastically for whomever it was to enter. The door opened and Toon Link let himself in. His young face was scrunched in an almost pensive expression.

Marth watched him silently, his eyes following the little swordsman as he made his way over to the chair by Marth's bedside and clambered on it. He sat with his legs spread out before him, hanging slightly off the edge of the chair as they were too short to touch the ground or even then chair bar for that matter. He placed his hands on his lap, his feet swinging slightly as he fidgeted.

The young swordsman made no attempt whatsoever to explain either himself or his presence and Marth blinked and raised his eyebrows in question. Toon Link took a breath and then let it go in a short puff upwards that ruffled his blond hair. He looked straight ahead of him, the pensive look still there. The silence soon turned awkward for Marth and he sat up a little more and turned slightly to better fix his attention on the boy sitting next to him.

"Hello," Marth said finally, the hint of a question in his voice.

"Hi," the boy replied, the word coming out in an almost sigh.

Marth was about to try a different tack when Toon Link suddenly turned dark green eyes on him.

"You're a good person and I like you," he took a breath, "You've helped me out before and I was wondering if you might do it again…. Though, you were the one hurt by all this and so you might not want to." Toon Link stared shrewdly at him, "But, in being a prince, I'd bet you've probably had to make choices that were hard, without adding your own feelings into the matter- choices that are harder than black and white?"

Marth found himself rendered momentarily speechless at Toon Link's unexpected spiel and show of intuitive logic. Though normally quite able to fit inside the bounds of a normal twelve year old, the young hylain hero sometimes showed startling flashes of perception and intelligence that surpassed his years. He thought just a little differently from those around him.

"I'm having a big problem and I don't know what to do. I can't decide what is right and I was wondering if you could help me."

"I will definitely try to, if I am able," Marth said genuinely.

The boy's face broke into a grateful smile.

"Thank you!"

The young green clad swordsman moved from the chair he had been occupying and invited himself onto the bed so he was sitting on the opposite end of it, facing Marth as if they were talking over and invisible table. Without any further preamble, he launched into his question.

"Is there a difference between fairness and justice? In Hyrule we have this saying, 'an eye for an eye,' and that might be fair, but that's not justice by itself is it? If a man lost and eye and then hunted down the person whose fault it was and did the same thing, that would be more like revenge than justice wouldn't it? I feel that doing something like that is not right, it feels wrong to me, but I don't know why, not in words anyway. Why does it matter that fairness and justice might not be the same thing?"

"To clarify- does this person, the man who lost his eye, live in a place where there is a court of law that would provide a fair trial?"

Toon Link thought for a moment then nodded, "does it matter?"

"I would say it does; because that means that there is a higher power or a community that they are both responsible to. It means that there is a person or group who's duty is to take action for all the people according to their laws. If there wasn't then the lines would be a bit more blurred, to me anyway. Because, in that situation, if the man wronged did not take action then there would be no one who would. However, even then something like that is more like revenge or lynch mobbing than a system that is fair for everyone."

Toon Link thought for a moment, his eyes troubled and thoughtful. He warped his small arms about his knees and waited for Marth to continue.

"What I think is this, and this might be why you think that it is wrong," Marth said finally. "If the person wronged loses sight of his own morals and principles to get revenge for himself then, in a way, he has let himself become exactly the same as the person who first wronged him. Following that line of thought- if he is exactly the same as the person who wronged him first, then he has lost the right to claim himself as better- as righteous… The person he got revenge on would be well within his own rights to get revenge himself, creating a cycle that leaves everybody blind. "

Toon Link's eyes brightened. "Yes! I think you're right! You know, when it comes to advice you are a good as Ike, Zelda… or Link…"

Ike? Marth thought with a slight smile, only partially surprised.

Toon Link seemed upset at the mention of that last name, then squared his small shoulders, the sadness and pensiveness in his eyes tuning into resolve and purpose.

"I think I know what I should do now."

A small flicker of warning began enter Marth's tired mind as he had the sense to wonder if he hadn't just persuaded Toon Link to do something foolish or dangerous.

"You never told me, Toony, what caused you to want to ask this question, and why did you think that, because I've been hurt, I might not be able to help you in an unbiased way?" he already had a sneaking suspicion by the nature of their conversation and the way that Toon Link had been acting that it probably had something to do with Link.

The young swordsman had climbed easily back down to the ground and then stopped, his green eyes locking with Marth's light blue ones.

"Well, you see, Master Hand and his friend have decided that Link shouldn't just be kicked out for what he did. They think it would be more fair to everyone, especially you, if they make Link go though the same thing you did. They are going to put him on a stage without weapons, with overwhelming odds and breaking shields. I didn't-" Toon Link got no further.

"WHAT?!"

Marth shot straight up into a sitting position and then wished he hadn't. His exclamation was lost in a cry of pain as his sudden motion wracked his still healing injuries. He lay back, trying to breathe though the sudden pulses of agony. His weary mind was now fully awake and, after flitting uncertainly through many different emotions for nearly two days now, finally settled on one- and that was anger. As the pain began to die down he became vaguely aware of Toon Link's concerned voice.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to hurt you. I knew that it was too personal to ask you, but I didn't know who else to ask, Ike's locked up and-"

"When?" Marth managed to rasp out one word, cutting off any further apologies or explanations. Somehow Toon Link understood what he meant.

"In about five minutes," he replied and then took a step back when he caught sight of Marth's angry expression as he did not know who the anger was directed at- him, Link, Master Hand? However, he stopped backing away when he saw Marth's expression calm slightly.

"It's alright, I'm not angry at you. None of this is your fault." He took a breath, "Do you think you can do something for me?"

Toon Link nodded.

"Can you figure out how to open a warp gate?"

"I've watched Master Hand do it before, I think I can."

"Find a way and I'll meet you there. I might also ask to borrow your sword, and have another minor job for you if you are willing."

Toon Link's almost scared expression turned hopeful, "You mean to help me?"

"How could I be a man worthy of trust if my words never matched my actions?" Marth asked in answer.

Toon Link smiled then and ran out the door. Marth rose slowly, testing his balance and pain. He painstakingly made his way across the room to where his tabard and armor lay neatly piled. He cursed the slowness of his pace.

He reached for his blue tunic and eased it over his head and bandaged torso, ignoring the sharp lances of agony that pulled with the motion. He repeated that move twice more with his gold edged blue tabard and again with his breastplate and shoulder armor. By then, his breath was coming in shuddering hisses through his clenched teeth. His boots lay on the ground nearby and he bent carefully to put them on. He then tied his belt around his middle and placed his regained sword within its proper resting place at his side. He could not go where he indented to unarmed and unprotected.

Last of all, he straightened his hair and placed the gold half circlet atop his head and turned towards the door. If one intended to tear down a regime one had to look the part. As he walked, he once again cursed the slowness of his movements and the limp he had developed due to the knife sharp pain in his middle. He reached for the doorknob.

Nurse Joy was making her way down the hallway. Though her position here was mostly to tend wounded pokemon, she often worked as a nurse for other patients if Dr. Mario was short handed. Many of the Smashers, doctors and pokemon alike were at this moment watching Link's… she didn't know what to call it. However, she did know for a fact that she would rather watch over the wounded prince then watch someone get hurt. It went against her principles as a healer, but it was not as if she could stop it.

She pulled the door open with a low sigh and was shocked into stillness for a few moments when she saw her would be patient standing before her. His damaged face was frozen in an expression of surprise very similar to her own. Not only was he out of bed but he was fully dressed, armed, and armored, it also appeared that he was trying to leave. Her moment of shock passed and she put her hands on her hips and graced him with her best withering glare.

"Exactly what do you think you're doing?" she demanded.

The prince seemed annoyingly un-withered and instead of backing away or apologizing, his face set in determined lines.

"Leaving," he said simply, his features set in an impatient angry frown.

"Oh no you're not, you are going to lay right back down and stay put, I will not have you bursting your stitches or-"

Marth drew himself up to his full height.

"No, milady, I will be leaving," his voice had grown angry and he was not controlling it well, though he appeared to have tried.

"You will be doing what I say or I will call Master Hand or his friend to make sure that you do. You are not cleared to leave and-"

Whatever she was about to say ended in a frightened squeak as Marth, his face twisting from an expression of worry at her threat to utter fury, drew his sword, took a step towards her and pointed his blade at her throat in one fluid motion.

"I will be leaving, and you will not be getting in my way. I will be walking out of here and you will not so much as breathe a word of this to anyone. Am I making myself completely clear, milady?" he hissed at her. It was a bluff; he would never harm a helpless person, but she didn't know that and he needed to get past her and had no time to convince her properly.

Nurse Joy looked up in shock at Marth's face. His eyes burned with a passion she could not identify. It was just so different from his usual cool anger. She swallowed hard as she felt the control she, as a doctor, should have over a patient dissolve into nothing.

Marth was known for being a hard person to anger; he almost never lost his cool. However, it was common knowledge that, on the rare occasion when he did, his anger was cold, almost passive aggressive. Instead of taking a step forward when enraged, he would take a step back. When he did so, his cold silent scrutiny would be enough to set anyone on edge because it was calculated not impassioned. As terrifying as that was, this was somehow worse and its uniqueness spoke volumes to his deathly seriousness.

"Y-yes," she stammered.

"Then, if you please, step out of my way," he snarled, though somehow still managing to make himself sound cultured and well mannered.

Well, it was a well mannered as someone could possibly sound when half blinded by rage and threatening someone severe bodily harm if they did not comply with their wish.

She stepped back and let him pass, trying to still the tremor that had taken hold in her hands.

Marth limped down the hallway, his free hand pressing gingerly into his aching side. All his injuries had stiffened horribly because of all the time he had spent laying idle. However, as he adjusted to this, he began to be able to move more surely and at a greater speed. By the time he reached the bend in the hallway, at the end of the dormitory wing, he was almost at a normal walking pace.

Grimacing, he pushed past the hurt and focused his mind only on his set objective. It was a trick that had kept him alive and fighting though many a battle on his quest to reclaim his kingdom and fight evil from his land. Every step took him closer to the Mii stage control room, closer to Toon Link. He had no time to spare.

~x~X~x~

Link stared up in surprise, chest heaving as he tried to regain his breath and focus. The world still swam before him for a moment before it stilled. His attackers had paused in shock and the whole stadium had fallen silent. Link's dark blue eyes focused upon his unexpected savior.

"Marth?" he managed to gasp in surprise.

He became suddenly aware of Master Hand calling to stop the flow of enemies, but there was nothing he could do about the ones already on the stage.

The Kritter, recovering from its initial shock, re-gathered itself and struck forwards again. Marth was ready for it and employed a graceful counter attack. Link rose to his feet, placing his back against that of the prince in order to guard the rear as best he could. However, without a weapon and hurt as he was, he feared he would not do so well. Marth pushed the Kritter back and, during the brief calm period, pressed something into Link's hand without fully turning around.

It was the master sword, but not his master sword. This one belonged to Toon Link and it was more like a short sword in Link's hand. But it was a weapon and a weapon he could use well. Soon the stage was totally clear, all enemies flung to safety by their protective shielding.

Link turned to look at Marth, but the prince was no longer at his back. He was at the foremost edge of the stage, obviously anticipating the entreaty that would most definitely come. They did not have long to wait. The voice of Eroc boomed over the speaker.

"Marth, as glad as I am to see you on your feet, I can't say that I am glad to see you where you are now. Link's fate has already been decided and you need to get off the stage. Link has a debt to be paid and I need to reset things from where we left off."

Math flung his head back, his bruised face twisted into such an expression of rage that it took Link slightly aback.

"Saseru monoka!" He practically screamed at the observer's box. "I will not let you!" he repeated in the common tongue.

His chest heaved slightly with ragged breaths. Link had hardly ever seen Marth so incensed.

"What do you think gives you the right to act as you have?" he demanded, his voice and temper more under control, but still livid.

"It's the only fair thing to do to him considering. Not to mention the fact that this is done for you, for you to have some retribution for what was done."

"Fair? This isn't fair, this is cruel!" he swung his arm outwards and to the side in an angry gesture that seemed to cut off any other explanation then the one he had given.

His brows lowered further and, when he spoke again, his tone was much quieter and it had the effect, perfectly timed as it was, to draw those watching inwards as they leaned forwards to better hear his words. Angry or no, Link could not help but admire Marth's skill as an orator.

"Don't you dare say that this is done in my name or for me," he almost hissed. "I never asked for this; I never would have!"

"But you are a prince, a ruler of a nation, a veritable king if you will. What would have happened to your kingdom your people if Link's scheme had claimed your life? Your country would be plunged into turmoil, your people left to suffer! An attack on a _king_ deserves retribution!" Eroc shouted.

"King?" Marth's voice was soft, but less angry as he recognized Eroc's words for what they were. He shook his head with the faintest of smiles. "But, Eroc, when I am here I am no king, I have no subjects merely comrades at arms all serving with me towards the same aim. There are no captains, no leaders, amongst us smashers. I take a position no greater and no less than that of my companions.

"King?" he repeated, his voice once again on the verge of angry, "you said that merely to serve your own ends. In calling me a king you never actually sought to give me the authority that comes with such a name or twice and with more power I would have sought to defy your plan. The thing is, Link didn't kill me. My subjects are in no danger here and I find myself able to act and speak in the freedom of my own conscience. How can you say that this retribution is needed when I, the one wronged, seek no such recompense?"

This may not have been the best time to make such an observation but Link could not help but notice that, if you ever wanted to know if Marth was truly angry, all you had to do was listen to his words. His speech became more formal more complex the angrier or more uncomfortable he was. Link also decided that it would probably not be advantageous to go up against him in any sort of debate. Eroc had yet to make a statement that was not instantly refuted and shamed by Marth's eloquent logic and reason.

Link looked towards Eroc, who was beginning to look uncomfortable, and waited expectantly to see what he would say to try and worm his slimy way out of Marth's argument.

"I don't understand Prince Marth; why would you seek to help a criminal avoid punishment? You want him set free, unhindered, to do his vile deeds to others? Why would you do this? He is guilty!"

"It doesn't matter whether he is guilty or not! I would seek justice only, and this," he gestured passionately around him, "This isn't justice. I won't stand by and allow this to stand; It borders on tyranny. This may not be my kingdom but I still believe that any accused person deserves a fair trial. If he were my subject he would be brought before me and my counsel and he would be considered innocent until proven guilty. He would get a chance to speak his side or have someone speak for him. That way the sentence would be as unbiased as possible. Only then would I make a judgement, and even then I would never give him a sentence like this. I don't believe in torture, and what you have set up here could easily be considered that.

"However, since he attacked me here- a place of commerce between all our peoples- it is true that I have no power to decide or act, but neither do you Eroc, or you Master Hand. There is no law, statute, stipulation or article in Master Hand's rules here that states that a person can be condemned or punished in any way other than expulsion from the mansion and being handed over to the authorities of their own country. All countries in participation signed that agreement- I know because I was one of them! Considering this, Link deserves to be turned over to and tried by his own people. There is no other action you can take."

"I believe that would be far more just than this tyranny that you have set up here. True justice, should be a system that is built to be fair for all people all the time- not fair to a few in the heat of an angry moment! This is my position and why I am standing here now and I will not sit down or step aside! I might be the only one here who believes this way and, if I am, then so be it; however, I do not think I am," he addressed the smashers now.

He wasn't the only one. Link's heart, which had felt as if it had been torn in several places by the feelings of broken trust and abandonment, began to mend slightly as he saw familiar faces in the crowd begin to stand up where they stood with hardly any urging from Marth. They stood in silent support of Marth's position, and for him: Lucina Fox, Samus, Pit, Peach, Mario, Luigi, Pikachu, Captain Falcon, Falco, Sonic and followed by all the pokemon and Yoshi.

Then the Wii Fit Trainers stood with Little Mac, Lady Palutana and Rosalina. Kirby and then Meta Knight tried to add support as well though the difference between sitting and standing for them was almost negligible. Junior Bowser and his crew along with Bowser and even Wario seemed to be moved.

Link found himself mildly surprised to see Ganondorf numbering among those standing. Though it was not a totally unsurprising occurrence, Ganon did have a warlord's code. He believed that differences and problems should be solved in the field of combat, a duel between the two aggrieved, for that showed true power and strength, unlike a lynch mob.

Soon there was not a single smasher who remained seated. In the case of a few other villains Link was not sure whether they did it out of true feelings or just a shrugging stance to follow the majority- though it did not especially matter to Link why they stood, just that they were standing.

Marth had provided the foundation they had lacked. He had also provided the opportunity to let them all stand together if they chose, so they could not be picked off one by one. Master Hand might be willing to expel a few of his fighters, but he could hardly expel them all.

Eroc took an involuntary step back, "Don't fall for the Altean's clever words, he just wants hylain law to handle the matter so Zelda will go easy on Link!"

"That is an unfounded statement. Zelda is a princess, well known throughout her kingdom and others from being a just ruler, she wouldn't let biases get in the way of the law, or what's best for her people."

"Yeah!" Captain Falcon agreed tuning towards Eroc, "now it just sounds like you are fishing for excuses!"

"Cast away then," Samus added, "you won't be catching anything."

It was then that Link knew that Eroc would have to back down, for he had lost all momentum with the crowd. Sure enough, he addressed all the smashers.

"Master Hand and I will hold a short council," he said finally and they moved back to the part of the observer's box furthest from view.

Link felt his heart near burst with gratitude for his friend's timely intervention. He took a step towards Marth, his once despondent eyes now bright with a thankful joy, a genuine smile spread across his face. He reached a hand towards Marth's shoulder, words of thanks already on his tongue.

Marth caught Link's motion in his periphery and whirled to face him, his sword held diagonally across his body in a position that was halfway between an aggressive and a defensive stance.

Assuming it to be a reflex reaction, Link smiled again, holding his arm out in order to clasp Marth's hand. Marth flinched noticeably and stepped back into a more aggressive stance.

Link's grin fell, "Marth?" he asked quietly.

"I bought you time and a reprieve, but it all depends on you now. I cannot help you or stop your fate again should you try anything violent with so many witnesses." His voice had become almost emotionless, his face expressionless, but his eyes were less so: anger mixed with sorrow, hurt, and confusion and all that was all overlaid by determination.

Link tilted his head to the side in confusion for a moment, until his gaze followed where Marth's eyes were fixed- the short sword held ready in his left hand. It was a mere force of habit never to lower his weapon when there was still a hint of a threat in the air. It was not even something he particularly considered anymore.

He looked from the weapon to Marth's bruised face and lowered it. He held his arms upwards and out to his sides to show that he meant no harm. He was still puzzled though- surely Marth knew him better than that.

At his motion, Marth flinched again, though not as noticeably this time. High hopes and joy began to crash to pieces. His heart sank as he realized what was wrong with is friend.

"You believe that I'm the one who sabotaged the game, don't you?" he said slowly, painfully.

As soon as the words left his mouth though, the pain was instantly replaced by awe and his small smile returned.

"You believed that I'm the one who hurt you and yet you still came to my defense?" he shook his head in amazement. "Marth…" he let out a short airy laugh that was almost a sound of near disbelief. At a loss for words, he bent to one knee skillfully moving his hold on Toon Link's weapon from the hilt to the blade itself and offered it to Marth pummel first in a loose grip.

"You have my upmost respect…" Link said finally. "I wasn't going to attack you, all I wanted to do was thank you for what you did, if not for you…" he winced and Marth suddenly became aware of the lines of red staining his tunic front and the slight tremor of his arm as he offered the sword.

Marth was taken slightly aback by this. He had expected a totally different reaction. He would have expected embarrassed unease, unrest or just all out hostility. Someone who disliked him enough to hurt him as badly as they had done, wouldn't kneel before him, offer their only weapon… would they? For the first time, he looked into Link's eyes, searching.

"I swear I did not take your sword and sabotage the game. I would rather have taken your place then seen you like that at the end of that match."

In all the time Marth had known Link, he had never lied to him, and his eyes weren't lying now either. The longer he looked, the more this whole thing didn't feel right. Marth slowly lowered his own sword, his mind filling with doubt that brought with it a sense of pure relief, which in turn brought a sense of healing in its wake.

Link smiled crookedly at him, his eyes sparking with that familiar friendship and mischief.

"I would never hurt you Marth… not unless, you know, you really deserved it."

Marth raised an eyebrow at that, but could not keep the faintest of smiles from growing on his lips.

"It wasn't you," he said finally, feeling all the tension drain from him. He regarded Link then with over-exaggerated poise. He leaned forward slightly and then replied in a soft almost whisper. "Though, even if I did deserve it, I still have my doubts that you could reach high enough to cause any actual damage."

"Oh, is that a challenge?" Link asked with a laugh straightening to his full height.

"No, just a fact."

"You are quite on your way to deserving it Marth."

The pair of them grinned at each other and clasped arms, before Link pulled the startled prince towards him in a light hug.

"Thank you," Link whispered again.

"It wasn't you," Marth found himself repeating, as he held his friend at arm's length, joy filling his heart with the admission "I'm sorry I ever doubted."

Link looked about to reply when a voice brought all their attention to the stands.

"Marth is right! It wasn't Link!" A female voice said loudly. All eyes in the stadium turned towards the sound and focused on Robin standing on the observer's platform opposite the one Eroc and Master Hand were in. By this time Master Hand and Eroc seemed to have finished their discussion. The tactician took a few heavy breaths as if she had just run several miles to get there, and perhaps she had, Marth thought. Once she had her bearings, she repeated herself.

"It wasn't Link, and I can prove it!"

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Feedback is always appreciated.

I'd like to thank some sneaky politicians for this chapter who, during their campaign, used the word fairness in place of justice and had the nerve to think that there would be people who wouldn't realize that there sometimes is a difference and that that difference can be very important. They gave me some good writing material.

Question: Is there any Smash Bros character you like to play with, but are not very good at using?


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** The second to last chapter is up! Time for Robin's evidence! This one was pretty fun to write and I hope you all enjoy it too. Thanks to all my readers! You guys are fully awesome!

 **telesoap:** I'm not so very good at Ness either X) Robin's evidence is here, you don't have to wait any longer. Thanks for the review!

 **silverheartlugia2000:** I couldn't help but add Nurse Joy XD I couldn't make them enemies for long, I much prefer them as bros. Thank you for the review!

 **Mew29240:** I'm sure Robin didn't like that XD I thought that Toon Link would be the type to do that. It would have been weird for Ike to be the only one who outright didn't doubt Link, I think and Marth needed a chance to be awesome XD Thank you so much for the review!

Also, special thanks to **InkWoven** who pointed out, and helped me fix, a serious flaw in the previous chapter in regards to some of the things Marth said to Eroc. Thank you, It is much appreciated!

* * *

 **Chapter 7: The Truth of the Matter**

Toon Link raced down the hallway towards the storage room, intent upon his mission. That mission was to free Ike. He dashed into the room and then stopped short in surprise. There was a twisted jagged hole in the front of the now dented and warped metal panel of the locker and the box itself was empty. It was as if Ike had first punched or carved out the hole in the middle, just large enough to be able to slide free the middle bolt. He then must have bowed out the center enough for him to slip his arm out and remove the top and bottom bolts as well. All that, however, was only the first surprise.

Ike was standing tall in the middle of the room, the metal plated gauntlet missing from his right hand which was warped in a crude blood-soaked bandage that went almost to his elbow. In front of him, a large group of assist trophies were gathered and armed for battle. Ike raised his sword into the air and the action was mirrored by the many assist trophies as they echoed his battle cry.

Toon Link had no idea how Ike had done this, but not only had he broken free from his prison, but he had also somehow managed to convince many of the assist trophies to take his side, his position, and follow him into battle. Toon Link stood dumbfounded for a moment at the mercenary's rallying skill. Then he headed forwards to stand side by side with the assist trophies, with a furious looking Midna on one side and Lyn on the other.

~x~X~x~

"What do you mean?" Eroc demanded of the tactician. "All the evidence against Link is irrefutable."

"I don't believe that anything is totally irrefutable," Robin said in reply. "Well nothing aside from friendship or love, and occasionally hunger, but that's beside the point. Though it does bring me to my first point."

"And what, may I ask, might that be?"

"The point is this, I could not find a motive for Link to suddenly want to kill or injure his friend."

"Then you obviously weren't looking hard enough, because I can see several and first and foremost is jealousy," Eroc said in the manner of one who considered himself in expert in such matters. "It's obvious that Link likes Zelda, and what happens at the start of the season? Instead of being paired with her like last year, she gets paired with Marth. He is then forced to watch in silence, unable to do anything as they grow closer and closer, until it gets so that she is spending more time with the prince than with him. The person he loves is not only refusing to return his affections, but she is also giving her love to another.

"That's what happened isn't it Link? You were losing her to another, and didn't it just drive you crazy even while it broke your heart? Soon it got so that you could no longer stand the sight of them together. It just made you so angry, didn't it? It made you so angry that you decided you needed to get rid of Marth once and for all."

Link's mouth dropped open, his eyes nearly bugging out of his head at this ridiculous unfounded spiel.

"I what?" he nearly squeaked, his face growing hot with anger and embarrassment amongst other things.

A strangled painful noise sounded behind him and Link turned around worried, to see that Marth had fallen to his knees, his left hand pressed into his side, his head bent. The breathy noise came as his body shook, and he seemed to be having trouble breathing properly.

"Marth, are you alright?"

"Of course he isn't alright!" Eroc cut Link off. "The truth of the matter has brought him to his knees!"

Marth doubled over then, the shaking intensified.

"Marth?" Link put a hand on his trembling shoulder, only to realize that Marth was laughing, and almost crying with pain at the same time because of it."

"More like… the…" Marth choked again between breaths, "the humor of… the matter," his body shook with silent mirth, tears streaming down a face that seemed to be a mix in expression between humor and agony all at once. "Tell him… to stop, it…." he gasped, still clutching his side, "it hurts too much…"

Link turned then to face Eroc, while Marth strove desperately to compose himself. Link shook his head.

"What you said isn't at all true," Link said as his face took on a confused expression. "And even if it were, what would give me the right to presume claim like that over another, over my queen, over a friend? She is my liege lady, I swore my life and my fealty to her. Her heart is hers to give to whomever she pleases. She is answerable to no one in that respect, least of all me. How can I lay claim on what is not mine to take- let alone be jealous of its loss?" He asked, looking genuinely puzzled, "Jealous enough to harm my own brother?" the last was muttered with a sick expression on his face and he shook his head again. "I can't even imagine the malice and selfishness that such thoughts and deeds would require; and it is in my experience that true love, real love, is never selfish. Also, I don't believe that either Zelda's or Marth's happiness could never make me unhappy."

Eyes all over the stadium flicked from Link to Eroc who seemed to be rendered momentarily speechless. Marth, having finally collected himself, stood at Link's side.

"As for me, my heart has only ever belonged to one woman, my Shiida. She is everything to me," he said quietly, as if the mere thought of ever hurting her or betraying her was an anathema to him. "I do not think that I have any more of my heart left to give to anyone in that way."

A hush fell over the smashers as they knew instinctively that both of them were speaking the truth.

"Also, aside from those glaringly obvious reasons, I know for a fact that Link never tried to kill Marth because, if that was actually his aim, Marth would already be dead." Robin went on. "Whilst I was waiting outside for news that night and early morning after the incident, I saw Link give Zelda healing medicine from his land to give to Marth, and I know that she did."

There came murmurs of agreement as the people who had visited Marth recalled seeing the empty glass bottle.

"That was from you?" Marth asked, and when Link nodded Marth thanked him.

"If Link wanted to kill Marth," Robin continued, "then all he would have had to have done would have been to poison the medicine in some way. He didn't though, and that means killing Marth was obviously not his intention."

"Maybe he didn't want to kill him, maybe he just wanted to insure that Marth wouldn't beat his score in The Hundred Man Smash, so he wouldn't lose the prize money."

"Can't be." This time it was Samus who spoke, "I know for a fact that they planned to share the money between them."

"Maybe he didn't want to share any longer."

"Then why make the deal in the first place? They did it just before the match." Samus shot back.

"Alright then," Eroc said, "Maybe he just wanted to teach Marth a lesson he wouldn't forget. Everyone knows how arrogant he is; perhaps Link felt that he needed to be put in his place. Perhaps he just wanted to humiliate him in front of everyone and did not intend for it to go as far as it did. That would explain why he gave Marth the medicine later, to soothe his guilt."

"That might be more believable- about the guilt I mean," Robin said, "But that theory alone isn't enough to refute the evidence that I found. You see, when I could not see a motive, I began to have some doubts, which was why I asked Master Hand to try and find the sword."

"What would that have to do with anything?" Eroc's voice sounded annoyed.

"Because Marth's sword is Chrom's sword— that is to say, the earliest version of it. That means the properties of it should be the same." She addressed Marth, "Your sword was once your father's right?"

Marth nodded.

"And before that, his father's, correct?"

"Yes."

"Which brings me to the point of this: Falcion can only truly be wielded well by a member of Anri's bloodline. Marth, if you please, would you let Link hold your sword?"

The prince seemed puzzled by this out of the blue request, but he nodded. He flipped his hold from the grip to the blade itself and held it out to Link, hilt first. Link looked a question at first Robin and then Marth and, when both nodded at him, he wrapped his fingers around the hilt, gripping it just as Marth let go. The point of the sword dropped immediately to the ground and slightly left.

Link's face showed total surprise. With a bit of effort, he lifted the sword and looked a question at Marth.

"The blade is thinner than mine but, at the same time, it feels like it has more weight and the balance is a bit weird. How do you fight so effectively with this?"

It was Marth's turn to look surprised, "The blade isn't heavy, and the balance is perfect."

"Just as I thought," Robin said almost smugly, "It is the same with Chrom's sword. Link responded just like a person would if they had never touched the sword before," She held up her hand to cut off Eroc's protest before he had the chance to voice it. "I know that he could just be pretending now that he had never held it before... but that still doesn't change the fact that you, Eroc, didn't even bother to pretend when you held it, right after it was found in Link's room.

"You held it then like one who was already accustomed to the feel of it, which means that either you are of Marth's bloodline, which I doubt since you are not even from the same world, or that you had wielded it before. Also, I believe the reason you asked to hold the sword in the first place was on the off chance that you were not chosen to oversee the finger print test. If your prints were found on the blade everyone would just assume it was because of that."

"That's a fascinating theory, but it still doesn't explain the note in Link's handwriting, his fingerprints on the blade, or his recorded image."

"No, but, once I saw you with the sword, I began to search to find out how all those came about. I started with the letter. It took me a while to get my hands on it but when I did, I could see that there was something wrong with it. Though the handwriting looks like Link's, what caught my eye was the fact that the ink of a few letters were smudged by the author's hand as it touched the paper when they wrote.

"Link does that a lot in his own writing it's true but, like I said before, there is a problem. You see, Link is left handed. That means he would not have smeared the last letters in a line of words, like it is here, but rather the first. There is no reason why a left handed person should ever touch their hand against the last letter in a line. It is a totally wasted motion. If Link really wrote this, then only the first ones should be smeared."

She held up the letter in question and then passed it down to the smashers below.

"You just so happen to be right handed, don't you Eroc? Also, you did get the job to oversee to see the fingerprint test didn't you? And that means you could easily have rigged the results. The only thing I can't figure out is how you got yourself to look like Link in the recording, and lured Link away from Marth to begin with, but I am guessing that it has something to do with some form of magic."

By now, all the smashers were looking straight at Eroc, their eyes either showing suspicion or anger.

For the first time, Eroc gave up his false pretenses and grinned maliciously.

"Really Robin, you are quite clever, but you don't have a clue as to how deep this goes. I have not yet played my final card, moved my final pawn in this game of mine. I started this mostly for the power. It was fun to play with all of you. I wanted to know how long I could manipulate you all and rule you without notice- but now that that hand is revealed, I have no choice but to end this game in bloodshed.

"I still have the upper hand. You see, I still have control of the Mii games. You made a decent counter move but the final plays are mine." He raised his arm to his the control panel on the side wall. "I hope you all will enjoy seeing Marth and Link die. The only thing I have left to say to you Robin is: check."

At his words, Link returned Marth's sword and the two exhausted and injured fighters stood resolutely back to back, weapons upraised. Though there was not much hope in their manner. They were totally spent, and would end up at their enemy's mercy, they knew. Eroc pressed the button with an air of finality, but nothing happened. He pressed it again, his expression puzzled.

"Checkmate," and angry voice said as a figure dropped into the observer's box from above.

Apparently, Eroc did not have control over all the pieces. Ike landed catlike and rose to his feet, sword pointed at Eroc.

"Having trouble controlling the stage?" The mercenary asked expressionlessly.

Behind him, Toon Link and some assist trophies surrounded Master Hand who had, so far, neither said nor done anything.

"How?" Eroc snarled,

"I have positioned magically and mechanically skilled assist trophies in the control room in order to override you."

"Your idea?" Eroc asked with an angry leer as he backed away from Ike as far as he could do.

"Mostly, but it does help when you view those around you as more than game pieces."

Eroc growled in frustration.

"I'll accept your surrender now," Ike said. His face was still expressionless, but his eyes were hard and dangerous.

Eroc let out a howl of rage and then threw himself at Ike, his pale hands upraised like claws. Ike's sword rose to met him and Eroc collided with the blade with a scream. He stood with the sword through his body before he began to dissipate. He vanished from view, turning into a shuddering dark shadow before disbanding like shattering black glass.

Link frowned as he recognized the sight and realized something else. When he had chased the shadow before, Eroc had still been able to attack Marth at the same time. That meant he was a magic wielder with the capability to split himself. Instantly, he tried to focus and get a sense of where Eroc could be now. He felt himself near swaying with fatigue and pain as he tried to pinpoint a location.

Suddenly, he knew instinctively where Eroc was. It was the only thing that made sense, when he thought about it- the only reason why the person he had been thinking of had been acting so strange for the past three days.

"Ike!" he yelled, "He has control of Master Hand!"

Ike turned just as Master Hand began to move for the first time since the pause in the game. Ike, Toon Link and the assist trophies stood their ground, readying themselves for an attack. Unfortunately, the Eroc-possessed Master Hand didn't seem interested in them. Writhing with fury, the hand sailed above their heads and floated towards the stands to attack the smashers. Ike gave swift orders for his troop to help the smashers fight against their possessed leader.

Link turned to Marth, "We can't let Eroc hurt anyone else. If I can get to Master Hand, I believe that I can free him from Eroc's influence. Though this isn't my master sword, it is still a version of the Blade of Evil's Bane. It can separate Master Hand form Eroc's influence.

Marth nodded and took a step forward before faltering slightly and pressing a hand to his side. He closed his eyes briefly before he spoke.

"The problem is that we can't get out unless someone lowers the shields on the stage."

As if in response to the prince's words, the shields began to lower with the stage- no doubt the work of the assist trophies. As soon as it reached ground level, the pair of them stepped off, supporting each other as they headed towards the stands. Ike and his assist trophies, as well as Robin, had reached the other Smashers. However, things were looking grim as none of the smashers, aside from a few villains, really wanted to hurt Master Hand. Link knew that they needed to act soon, before something nasty happened, but he and Marth were getting nowhere fast, there were too many stairs.

"We need to find a way to get him to come to us," Link said in between raged breaths, "so I can get close enough."

"Aright," Marth said as he let go of Link's arm to stand on the seats of the bleachers. He gathered himself for a moment and then pushed Link behind him.

"Hey Eroc!" He called out at the top of his voice, his bearing suddenly becoming unspeakably arrogant as he nearly posed. Though he shouted loudly, his voice still sounded poised and almost nonchalant rather than enraged and angry.

"For claiming to be some great chess master, you sure have the skill of a pawn when it comes to implementing your schemes!" He flicked his hair away from his battered face with his free hand in a saucy gesture that was so prideful and conceited that it even managed to slightly irritate Link.

Though it annoyed him, at the same time, he realized why Marth was doing it. Most people who actually knew Marth knew that he was not, in fact, arrogant. But Marth knew as well as Link, that the only reason Eroc would have brought that up earlier was if Eroc found Marth's princely and confident bearing irritating. That was why he was overdoing it now. He wanted to make Eroc angry.

"Perhaps I judged you too hastily," Marth continued shouting over the fading noise of battle as he caught Eroc's attention. "Maybe your skill is more comparable to the board itself: flat, useless aside from being a place holder, and rock stupid. I mean you couldn't even kill Link, let alone me, and do you know why? It is because each time you were outwitted by an uncultured mercenary- a veritable backwoods peasant, and a hylain child! I take back what I said _oh_ _great chess master_ , I think even a board could outwit you!"

"You think that I can't take out one pathetic insolent princeling?" The possessed hand screamed in rage.

"Eroc, you couldn't even take out a Pikmin," Marth said in a bored manner. He drew his sword and then sniffed disdainfully as he turned his head away in a totally unconcerned manner.

The possessed hand roared with rage, forming into a fist and shooting forwards towards Marth with frightening speed.

"You might want to get ready," Marth suggested mildly.

"No kidding," Link called back as he readied Toon Link's blade, "In fact, I think you might have overdone it a bit."

Marth stood composed and unmoving as the hand barreled towards him until the last possible moment.

"Now!" he shouted and leaped aside, revealing Link standing with weapon pointed forwards. The possessed hand realized the danger too late for him to stop and the blade sunk home. Master Hand screamed. Light and particle like pieces of shadow began shooting out of him. Link was thrown backwards and to the side, straight into Marth. They both tumbled to earth, Link hitting his head hard.

The world swam. The last thing he heard and saw was massive amounts of that shredded shadow pouring forth from Master Hand's limp form and then gathering together in the shape of a jagged shadow man with blazing red eyes. It raised its head and howled.

"I am Eroc Retsam—Master Core, the oncoming swarm! I will destroy you all!"

Link's vision began to blacken as he dimly saw the smashers and assist trophies rally to face Eroc's true form. Then his world went dark.

* * *

 **A/N:** Final chapter next week! I hope you all have been enjoying the story so far. Feedback is really helpful and appreciated!

My inspiration for this chapter is the inordinate amount of detective shows I have accidentally hooked myself on, not to mention the numerous books *sheepish grin* I can't help myself I love a good mystery X3

 **Question:** Who do you think has the best final smash?


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:** Here is the last chapter everybody! Time to brings in the closure and tie up all my loose ends. I would like to thank all my readers and everybody who reviewed, followed or favorited, it really means a lot. You guys are all fully awesome! Thanks!

 **silverheartlugia2000:** I couldn't leave Midna out, especially since she is an assist trophy in smash now XD Thanks for pointing that out! I'm the world's worst speller and so need all the help I can get X) Thank you for the help and the review! It means a lot.

 **telesoap:** I like Robin's final smash too. Ha! It sounds like you and I have exactly the same plans for this upcoming week. Great minds think alike :) Thanks for the review and the support!

 **InkWoven:** I'm glad it came across alright X) I thought the mood could stand to be lightened some. Kirby's final smash cracks me up too. Thank you for the review and for all your input! It really helped.

 **Karrington382:** I agree with you about both their final smashes. Dawww :3 Thanks for the compliment and thanks for the review!

 **Mew29240:** Master Core is going down. I think Marth and Link would work rather well together. I'm also biased when it come to the Triforce Slash too I must say XD Thanks for the review!

* * *

 **Chapter 8: The Calm After a Storm**

"Ouch!"

Link's eyes opened slowly as the protesting shout penetrated his consciousness. He blinked as the room came into focus. He was in the healers' quarters.

"Oww!" The voice he had heard before protested again and he recognized it as belonging to Marth.

"I warned you about leaving you know, I told you that you weren't well enough to go traipsing off, but you didn't listen."

Link turned his head to see a tired eyed Marth sitting shirtless on a healer's bed. Ugly bruises still marred his skin and Nurse Joy was crouching in front of him laboring with a needle and thread over his wounded side.

"I told you that you would burst your stitches, and now I am left to fix your foolishness."

Marth cut his eyes to the side to catch Ike's gaze. The mercenary, Link saw, was on the next bed over. His right arm was in a sling and the hand that protruded from it was heavily bandaged. On his head, a bandage replaced his usual headband.

Link saw Marth mouth the words, 'vengeance,' whist nodding his head towards the furious nurse.

Ike grinned tiredly, 'more like deserved comeuppance,' he mouthed back.

'She still could be more gentle about-' he started to mouth in reply before the healer's needle jabbed him with needless roughness.

"Oww!"

Ike let out a muffled chuckle and Marth eyed him balefully, almost reproachfully, until his expression turned contemplative.

"Milady," Marth began, putting a hand on her arm. "I know I said it before, but I wanted to apologize again for my uncivil behavior towards you earlier. It was beyond callous, and I regret it more than I regret anything. You were right, I was being a fool, and I am sorry that my actions hurt you and caused you unnecessary worry and work on top of everything… I know you might not want to hear this now but I also wanted to thank you for everything you tried to do for me and have done. I am grateful for your help, skill, wisdom and kindness towards me even though I do not deserve it."

Link rolled his eyes slightly but could not keep the grin from his face as he saw Nurse Joy look up into Marth's compelling, honest, and remorsefully soft sky blue eyes. His handsome face settled into the look of a chastened puppy, made all the more pitiful by his battle worn features. Her frown lessened and her own eyes softened. She ducked her head in acceptance of his apology. From then on, Marth no longer had need to complain about her rough prodding.

Said prince grinned almost smugly at Ike who shook his head muttering darkly about something that sounded like 'silver tongued menace,' under his breath.

'Hey, I did actually mean every word I said,' Marth mouthed in protest.

Link started to sit up, noticing the soft bandages that swathed his chest where the lizard claws had bit flesh. The last thing that he remembered was seeing Eroc's true form, but he guessed by his friends' easy manner that they must have won the battle. He guessed also, by the fact that Marth was still being tended to, that the end of this fight had not been too long ago. He sat up fully, feeling sore and tired, and turned towards his friends.

"I take it we won?" he asked them, "Is everyone alright?"

His two blue haired companions beamed at him.

"Link! Your awake! How are you feeling?" they asked one after the other.

"Not bad considering, aside from the slight feeling that I think I might have missed something hugely important. What happened?"

Link listened as Ike began to explain recent events. Apparently, after he had fallen unconscious, all the smashers, that were able, had fought Eroc's awakened form. All of them had worked together to wear down the blighted shadow. It was a shadow that changed forms each time it began to diminish. It went from the shape of a giant to that of a beast, then swords.

"And then he even had the nerve to mimic Samus's form," Ike continued. "By that time Master Hand had even recovered enough to join us. Eroc or Master Core, was strong but his might was not enough to stop all the smashers, and the assist trophies as well as Master Hand. In the end, all that was left was a nearly translucent sort of rainbow colored core. Master Hand says that it is dormant, but he has it contained.

"So everyone is alright then?" Link asked finally.

"Aside for everyone being a little banged up, yes. Nobody was severely injured. In fact, we three are some of the worst off, though that might just be because they got to us a bit before the battle," Ike finished.

Link nodded, "That's good," he said finally. "I feel sorry for Master Hand, getting betrayed by a friend; I think I know a little bit about how that must feel."

He leaned back against the wall that his bed was against and closed his eyes whilst pulling his knees close to his chest. He heard the squeak of Ike's own cot as his friend rose. Link watched though half lidded eyes as Ike carefully made his way over to sit next to him, leaning his own head against the wall. He didn't say anything. He didn't have to; they understood each other without conscious thought or effort.

"You know, these past few days have actually been pretty awful." Ike said finally, as if just now coming to the revelation.

Link opened his tired eyes, finding a bit of the energy and heart to smile at the understatement.

"Now that I look back, I realize that I didn't enjoy it very much either—fancy that."

"All three of us got the shortest end of the stick, I'd say." Marth said as he sat at Link's other side, having just escaped from Nurse Joy's final ministrations.

"But out of everyone, I'd say that we had the most fun. That's an upside" Link added.

"I don't think your and Ike's idea of fun is quite the same as mine," Marth said quietly. "In order to really enjoy myself, I think I prefer to spend less time introducing my face and pride to the dirt."

Link managed a chuckle at that. He relaxed fully then for the first time in days. He actually felt strangely safe in between his two best friends here, his brothers at arms. He realized vaguely that he should probably be more emotionally hurt than he was feeling. He did feel it slightly. But somehow, going though something with true friends at his side, with the bonus of a show of camaraderie from others as well, made difficult situations that much more easily to take and then move on from.

It made it so that the whole thing became remembered as an adventure in his mind rather than a traumatic experience. In fact, he knew that he was going to be alright, he thought as the three brothers sat together, simply enjoying each other's company. The only thing that could possibly make him feel even more alright would be if his other friends, Samus, Robin, Pit, and especially Zelda could be there to join them.

~x~X~x~

Zelda burst into the Smash mansion, her face set in an expression of furious outrage. Behind her stood an annoyed Lucario, Mewtwo, and Shulk. The letter that Eroc had given her had been a fake. Her council had not been having any serious issues. Not only was she furious at being lied to and at the sleepless nights and stress that that lie had brought with it, she was also smart enough to realize that she had been purposely singled out, Shulk, Mewtwo and Lucario as well.

She had run into the three of them on the way back. She often got prophetic dreams, Mewtwo was a physic, Shulk had foresight, and Lucario could sense a person's aura and so their intentions. She was not a fool; and so when she had seen that, of everyone, these three had been placed in the same boat as she, she had doubled her pace to get back. Needless to say, much of her anger was a mask for worry and fear.

That worry was only amplified by the sight of the Smashers themselves. They all had the look of just coming though a nasty fight. She quickly made her way over to Samus and Robin, the two of them looking like twins as they both limped slightly about. Lucina was not too far behind them, with her arm in a sling and Pit just behind her with a bandaged left wing.

"What happened?" Zelda demanded of the three girls and the angel who grinned sheepishly at her.

"You actually only just missed it," Samus said casually.

As soon as they got to the part in their explanation about Link, Zelda had rushed straight towards the infirmary, with Samus, Robin, and Lucina following not too far behind.

She headed towards the sectioned-off left side of the infirmary, concern riding in her chest until she caught sight of the three idiots who had caused her such worry, sleeping peacefully in one cot piled haphazardly atop each other. They looked absolutely horrible, but almost cute at the same time. She relaxed when she saw that they were alright.

She brushed a few wayward strands of blond hair from Link's face before tiredly dragging the next cot over until it was side by side with theirs- as there was no chair nearby- in order to watch over them.

In so doing, the hylain princess and her friends inadvertently started another puppy pile as they succumbed to exhaustion one after the other.

It was a sight that Princess Peach found to be totally adorable and Captain Falcon found to be utterly hilarious the very next morning.

~x~X~x~

Link walked from the training area to the mess hall, excited to find out what would be served for dinner. It felt good to be training again, after nearly half a week of enforced bed rest. At least he had had his friends to keep him company. As he thought of Zelda Ike and Marth and the other smashers, he felt a slight suspicion that they were up to something. And it something with which he was obviously not to be a part of. Based on Ike's grinning, he was not quite sure that he really wanted to find out what it was.

As he reached the door to the mess hall, he was startled to find it unusually quiet. Even more suspicious, he pushed open the door and was pleasantly startled to see the whole room set up for a feast as well as a party. The smashers themselves were arrayed around the room- waiting for him apparently, he found as they all raised their glasses in a toast to him and the room burst into cheers and excited conversation.

"What's going on?" Link asked Ike, a flush of embarrassment spreading from his cheeks to his pointed ears.

"This is an, 'I'm sorry for ever doubting you, Link,' party." Ike replied with a grin. "It was made because everyone feels the need to apologize for doubting you," he finished in a teasing manner. "It was Master Hand's idea. Marth, Zelda, and Peach organized it and everyone else helped—well, most everyone. A few of the villains didn't really want to lend a hand, but everyone else loves you."

Link suddenly felt a very warm feeling take hold in his chest and then he went to go and get himself some food.

"Don't forget to get extra for me," Ike called after him. "You and Marth still owe me several dinners, for saving your backsides," he teased.

A while later found him laughing and eating with his companions when Lucina stepped towards him, her eyes a little downcast.

"Link, I wanted to apologize for not thinking to consider other options than the ones given to me, and for doubting your character. You had always been so well, you, and I let anger cloud my judgment."

"It's alright, it's in the past. Besides, you stood up for me later, and that's all I really care about." He reassured her but, when he noticed the lingering sadness in her eyes, he went on. "I admit that the evidence against me was so condemning that, for a moment, I even doubted my own innocence. In fact, it was so bad that I had to have a serious discussion with myself. 'Why, myself?' I asked myself, 'why did you go and do something so stupid and terrible without even getting permission from yourself to do it?' I demanded to know."

Lucina looked up at him, her brows furrowing, "really?" she asked.

"No," he laughed and, after she shot him a reproachful, look she actually smiled and then even chuckled.

Link smiled then, knowing that he had just officially made another good friend.

~x~X~x~

It was the end of the smashing season and the Tournament competitions of Smash Run were nearing the end. Link and Ike had cleared the monster infested caves with a record score and were now heading towards the final competition.

This time it was Link's turn to compete in the final round. As he entered the last cave, he saw what the competition was and felt a sense of irony. Just as in the pretournament, it was Climb. And, just like before, he could see Captain Falcon, Mario and, last but not least, Samus, heading towards the starting line.

"Seeing as we did not run into my girlfriend, I can do the run for us, if you want," Ike said, catching him by the shoulder. But Link shook his head.

"No, I need to do this," he said determinately.

"Alright," Ike said, trusting his judgment.

A short while into the final round found Link desperately trying to hold the lead as Samus advanced steadily upon him. Mario and Captain Falcon battled for third. He threw himself upwards, refusing to repeat his loss in the pretournament. He and Ike had improved a lot since then by hard training, but so had Samus.

The five second warning horn blasted out and he desperately tried to keep his pace as he pulled himself upwards. He could see Samus gaining. He flipped himself over the final ledge. Whist in the middle of his areal summersault, he reached desperately into the pouch at his side and threw something down, landing upon it at the exact same time that Samus attained the ledge.

Once again, the two of them eyed each other as they waited for the winner to be announced. However, this time, Samus eyed him with an expression similar to surprise whilst he smiled confidently to himself from his perch atop a wooden box with a triforce painted on the front in gold and black. This time, he was the one standing taller than she.

"And the winner is…Link!" the announcer called.

Link stood proudly atop his box as the audience cheered. He could make out the form of Ike laughing hysterically down below, and Zelda laughing with Pit in the stands. He caught the eye of the grinning prince sitting next to the angel and princess. His eyes were alight with surprised pleasure and Link nodded once at him. Marth nodded back solemnly, looking just as proud before he laughed as well.

 **~The End~**

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks for reading! I hope you all found this last chapter enjoyable. I had great fun writing this story and hope that it was just as fun and exciting to read as it was for me to write.

 **Question:** Do any of you have any wish for any alternate costumes for any of your favorite characters?

I would actually like to see Link have his magic armor from TP as an alternate costume. I think it would be cool. (That or his Ordon wrestling outfit :3 I mean Shulk and Samus have swimsuit outfits so I don't think it's that unreasonable a thought XD )

Thanks again everyone! I wish all of you the best until next time! I hope you all have a truly epic and blessed rest of July.

 **~ATGTJ~**

~Kazi


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